Misfortune
by AmuletFortune98
Summary: Amu finds herself buying a golden chain bracelet at a festival, but after putting on the bracelet, bad things seem to keep happening to her. As her misfortune gets worse, will she be able to stop all the bad things that are happening before things get out of hand? Amuto! Rated T just in case. ROMANCE, TRAGEDY AND FANTASY! I didn't put fantasy in the genres, but it's in this story!
1. The Golden Chain

Hey everyone, It's AmuletFortune98 again!

Yay, another Shugo Chara fan fic! Some of you may know me from my first Shugo Chara fan fic "Please Remember". If not, it would be great if you could check that out as well if you like this story!

Anyways, here's my second Shugo Chara fan fic, "Misfortune"!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

_Hinamori Amu, Age 12_

I kick open my front door and run out, pulling my cell phone out of my pocket.

Rima's going to kill me! I told her I'd meet up with her at the festival at 3pm. I look at the time on my phone. It says 3:32pm, crap.

I start texting an apology to Rima as I turn the corner, but without watching where I'm going, I crash into something and fall to the ground. I look up from my phone in shock to see me lying on top of someone. I blush instantly and sit up as fast as I can, "G-Gomennasai!"

I look at the person I knocked over and I'm surprised to find it was a boy, a few years older than me probably. He has midnight blue hair and a good facial structure. His eyes are a gorgeous dark blue. My thoughts are interrupted, "Um, could you get up?"

I blush and stand up, offering a hand, "Gomennasai," I repeat. He ignores my hand and stands up, looking at me. He is extremely tall, I have to tilt my head up to look at him, "If there's anything I can do for you-"

"Whatever, just watch where you're going next time," he interrupts and looks at me, a little frustrated.

I bow to him then we stand there a little awkwardly.

"So, I'm gonna get going then...," I say finally and start walking by him. He grabs my arm and I turn to him, confused.

"What's your name?" he asks.

"H-Hinamori Amu."

"I'm Tsukiyomi Ikuto. It's nice meeting you, Amu," he smirks.

I look at him, "Hey, what about honorifics?"

"Nah, honorifics aren't really my thing," he shrugs, "Anyway, you should get going. You don't wanna be late, do you?"

I stare at him, "Wait, how'd you know I was going to be late?"

He chuckles, "Well, you seemed to be in a hurry when you ran right into me."

I blush, "O-Oh, right."

He turns around, "Ja ne, Amu," he starts walking off.

I sigh and turn around too. I look at my phone. Oh great! It was 3:44pm and I still haven't sent the text!

I quickly finish the apology text and rush to the festival.

Once I get there, I see Rima waiting impatiently by a tree, tapping her foot, "Finally!" she says when she sees me, "Why are you so late?"

"Gomennasai! I was lost track of time and when I was rushing to get here I ran into some guy and-"

"Ohhh, I see. So it was a guy!" she winked.

I blushed, "N-No! That's not what it was like!" I yell defensively.

"So, what's his name?"

"Rima!"

"Well? You do know his name, right?"

"Well, um... yes, but-"

"I knew it!" Rima chuckled and started walking through the festival. I ran to catch up with her, "So, what _is _his name?"

"T-Tsukiyomi Ikuto..."

"Hmmm, he sounds sexy, was he?"

I recall his gorgeous face and silky blue hair along with his deep blue eyes, "Um.. yeah, a little," I blush.

Rima laughs, "Good luck with him," I scowl at her but she just smiles.

We walk around the festival, playing games and eating and shopping at stands.

We pass by one stand that's selling jewelery. Rima and I stop there and look around. All of the jewelery looked homemade, and it was kind of plain. Nothing interested Rima, but I kept looking.

My gaze rested on a simple golden chain bracelet. It was really plain, but it somehow caught my attention and lured me in. Without knowing why, I bought the bracelet and hooked it around my wrist.

"That looks cute on you," Rima complimented.

"Thanks!" I smile as we walk around. We decide to eat dinner at a restaurant in the festival.

We sit down and order. Once the waiter left, Rima turns to me, "So about this guy you met, how old is he?"

I roll my eyes, "Not this again," I groan.

Rima giggles but keeps questioning, "So, how old is he, and what does he look like?"

"Um, I don't know? He's probably a little older than me. He's tall and has blue hair and eyes.."

"Ohhh! Sounds interesting! Do you like him?"

"Rima! We just met!"

"Love at first sight?"

I just glare at her, which seems to get her to stop.

The waiter comes back with our orders and places Rima's in front of her first. When he turns to me, my dish slips out of his hand and the food falls right on my lap. I gasp and look at the mess. When I look up, the waiter was bowing, "Gomennasai! I'll clean it up and get a new order on the house!"

I sigh and nod, then he runs off. I start cleaning up my lap, and Rima comes over to help too. My pants were completely ruined with curry stains, "I'll run and buy you some new pants! Be right back!" she dashes off and I just sit there.

Bad luck. I sigh. A few minutes later, the waiter comes back with a new plate of curry and sets it down in front of me. He apologizes again and leaves. Then Rima returns with a pair of red jean shorts. I thank her and go find a bathroom to change in.

I finally find a bathroom and open the door, only to find a man in there sitting on the toilet, I look away quickly as he yells, "Occupied!" I slam the door shut and find another bathroom.

Wow, _really_ bad luck.

Once I'm changed, I hurry back to Rima, who hasn't touched her food yet, "Aw, you didn't have to wait for me."

She shook her head, "About what happened, gomen."

I shrugged, "It's not your fault. It's that stupid waiters. Lets not tip." Rima nods and we both dig into our food. Mine burns my mouth surprisingly, even though it's been sitting here for a while. I guess I'm just having an unlucky day.

Rima walks me home since my house is closer than hers.

She smiles at me, "Oyasuminasai."

"Sayonara," I turn around and open the door. I head to the stairs, but trip on the first one. Of course. "Ouch!" I sigh and head up the stairs, limping.

I sit on my bed and rub my foot. I think I twisted my ankle. I lay down and look at the ceiling. Today wasn't that great. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

"ONEE-CHAN!" My little sister Ami pulls on my skirt.

"CAN WE PWEASE GO TO THE PARK?" I sigh and look at her.

"Fine, but you have to stop yelling."

"YAY!" I roll my eyes.

"Mom, Dad, I'm taking Ami to the park!" I call to my parents from the front door.

"Okay, be careful you two!" my mom calls back.

The park is right around the block, so it only takes about five minutes to walk there. Once we get there, Ami begs me to buy her ice cream. I get one chocolate cone for me and a strawberry one for her.

We walk around a little bit, then Ami sees one of her friends and runs to say hello to her. As I'm walking, my foot slides on something and I start to fall backwards, "Ah!"

I brace myself to hit the hard ground, but I never do. Instead, I find myself wrapped in someone's arms. I look to the ground to find a pile of ice. Wait, ice? I blink, letting my situation process in my head, then I stand up and turn around, bowing, "Gomennasai!"

I hear chuckling and I look up, "Tsukiyomi-san?"

"You need to start paying attention," he smirks.

"Ah, thanks for catching me. Um, wait, what are you doing here? Are you stalking me?"

He chuckles again, "I could be asking you the same thing!"

I roll my eyes, "Whatever," I turn around.

"Hang on, Amu," I turn back to him, "I don't like the way you say my name," he says.

I look at him, confused, "Tsukiyomi-san? What's wrong with that?"

"How about something a little more casual?"

"Ikuto-san?"

"Forget the honorific."

"But I just met you yesterday!" I argue.

He shrugs, "So? I'd rather you just call me by my first name."

"Fine," I scowl then turn around.

"That's not the attitude to have toward a person who stopped you from falling twice."

I ignore his comment, "Sayonara," I walk toward Ami.

"Time to go, Ami."

"AWW! Bye bye, Masa-chan!" I take Ami's hand and lead her out of the park.

"Ne, why are you limping?" Ami asks me as we walk home.

"Um, I tripped."

Ami giggles, "Onee-chan's a klutz!"

I sigh. Why am I so clumsy lately?

**~Chapter End~**

**Yayy I finished the first chapter!**

**Hehe, Amu is so unlucky... She is in "Please Remember" too! Hahaha poor Amu.**

**So how'd you guys like it? PLEASE review and tell me what you think about my story! **

**Oh, and don't forget to check out my other stories if you like this one!**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	2. A Warm Sensation

Wow! It took me a while to update this... Sorry for leaving you guys hanging!

Well, maybe it was just because I only had one chapter, but I didn't get very many reviews. However, I will keep updating! :D

Without further ado, here is chapter two!(Hahaha it rhymed!)

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

Homeroom at school was very boring, as usual. I found myself thinking of Ikuto multiple times during class, but I'm not sure why. I wanted to know why we suddenly bumped into each other again right after we just met the day before?

After homeroom, I go to my locker and grab the stuff I'll need for my next class. I walk down the hall and turn the corner, only to run into someone. Again, really?

My books fly out of my hands and I sigh, "Gomen I wasn't paying att-" I stop, shocked at who I ran into, "I-Ikuto!?"

"Well look who it is. I shouldn't be surprised you ran into me _again_," he smirks and bends down to pick up my books for me.

"W-What are you doing here?"

"You go to this school? I go to Seiyo High right next to Seiyo Elementary. I was just running an errand for teach."

I blink a couple of times. How is it, that he keeps appearing everywhere? Ikuto grabs all my books and hands them to me, "Oh, arigato.." I blush slightly.

"Watch where you're going," he smirks then bends down and whispers in my ear, "or else.."

I gasp a little at the closeness. What could he mean by that?

Ikuto chuckles and turns, walking away. I hear whispers from the people in the hall. Great, where they watching?

"Ehem," I turn around to see a group of pretty girls from my grade, "What's your name?" the girl closest to me with red curls asks coolly.

"Um, Hinamori Amu.."

"Well, _Hinamori Amu_," she spits out my name with disgust, "What do you think you were doing with Tsukiyomi Ikuto?"

Wait, they all knew who he was? "N-Nothing! I just ran into him-"

"And he picked up your books for you, along with whispering into your ear," the girl glares. I blush a little and look away, "Stay away from him, whore. He's mine," and with that, they turned and walked away, not forgetting to flip their hair in the process.

I stare, confused and threatened. Is there some sort of Ikuto fan club? Weird, I've never heard of him until a couple days ago.

I enter my next class and every eye goes on me. People start whispering and glancing at me. Some start giggling. I blink, confused, and try to ignore the stares I'm receiving as I head to my desk by the window.

Once everyone's seated, sensei starts handing out our test scores. He places my test upside down on my desk and gives me a look. I look at him confused as he turns and starts handing the rest of the test scores out.

I flip my paper over and stare at the number in red ink.

54

Wait a minute, a 54? No way, I was so confidant about this test! I studied for hours and I was so ready! I even felt like I got most of the answers right on the test.. No, there must be some sort of mistake..

"I'm happy to say that we have improved. Well, most of us," Sensei shoots me another look, causing everyone to look at me as well. I sink down in my seat and stare at my test. This isn't right, I usually get higher grades. The lowest I've ever gotten was a B!

After class I walk up so sensei, "Um, Sensei... Are you sure that this is graded correctly? I was sure I got at least a B+..."

"I was surprised as well, Hinamori-san. You usually do so well, so I spent a while looking over your answers, but I'm afraid to say that this was indeed failed. Just make sure to study more often," I'm about to protest when he shoos me away, "I don't want to have to write you a late pass, so hurry to your next class!" I sigh and walk out of the door.

The rest of the day wasn't great, either. I was so disappointed and distracted by failing that test, that I wasn't paying attention in my next class. Sensei gave me lunch detention so I couldn't talk with Rima at all. I tried my best to stay focused in the rest of my classes, but I kept coming up with the wrong answers for everything.

When school's finally over, I want nothing more than to get home and take a break from everything. However, instead...

"Hey, Amu."

I jump and turn to see the blue haired teenager staring at me, a smirk plastered to his face. Oh great. He's the _last_ person I want to see right now.

I cross my arms and turn away from him, "What do you want?"

"I only want to say hello," he chuckles, "You shouldn't be so cold to me. I have helped you so much already."

"Whatever. You've said hello, now go away," I start walking away from him, conscious of the death stares from multiple girls I'm getting.

"Well someone's in a grumpy mood," Ikuto jogs to my side and frowns, "Something happen during school?"

"Look," I stop walking and turn to him, glaring slightly, "If you haven't already noticed, your little fan club wants to murder me because I'm talking to you. The second you leave I'm going to be ripped to shreds."

"Guess I can't leave then," he smirks.

I roll my eyes and start walking again, "I just can't be seen with you, alright?"

"Okay," he grabs my hand and starts running in a different direction, pulling me along with him.

"Huh, Ikuto!? Wait, let go of me!"

Ikuto keeps running and doesn't stop until we reach a planetarium. Wait, our school has a planetarium? I had no idea...

Ikuto leads me inside, and I gasp as I look up at the beautiful night sky. I stand there, staring for a moment, before I come back to reality. Ikuto was still holding my hand, so I quickly pull away, "What do you think your doing? What was that?"

Ikuto shrugs and smiles, "You said it yourself. You can't be seen with me. Well, here we won't be seen."

I blush and turn away, embarrassed and angry, "Baka..,"

"Come on, Amu. Stay and look at the stars with me. You _do_ think their beautiful, don't you?" Ikuto leads me to a chair, and I sigh and sit down.

"Fine. But I'm not staying because of you. Only because the night sky is truly incredible," I look up and smile while admiring the shining stars.

We sit together in comfortable silence as we gaze up at the stars. Well, _I'm_ looking at the stars. I can feel Ikuto's gaze on me, but I try to make it so I don't notice. I finally look over at him, wanting to know why he's staring at me, but once I look at him, he turns his head and looks at the stars. I blink and dismiss it as I look back up.

"Ne, Ikuto, have you ever had a lot of bad luck all at once?" I blurt out.

He hesitates, thinking, then answers, "Yeah, sometimes. Well, it depends. Really bad luck, or just simple things?"

"Um, I don't know... Nevermind," I try to end the conversation, not really wanting to talk about it even though I was the one to bring it up.

"Have bad things been happening to you, Amu?" Ikuto looks at me.

"Well, um.. sort of...," I fiddle with the zipper on my bag.

"Amu, you know if anything bad happens to you, you can talk to me about it," I give him a look and he chuckles, "I'm actually pretty good with other people's problems."

A small blush rises to my cheeks, "Baka."

"I'm serious," he smiles. When I give him another look, he takes a pen and a notepad out of his bag and scribbles something onto the paper. He tears the paper out of the notepad and hands it to me, "Here's my number. You can call me whenever," he smiles. Why is he acting so sweet?

"O-Oh, um, thanks..," I blush again and take the paper, shoving it in my bag and zipping the pocket, however I'm so nervous I zip the bag too quickly, catching some skin from my thumb in the process, "Ouch!"

"What happened?"

"I pinched myself... Dammit!" I look at the red mark it left on my thumb sigh, surprised how an injury so small can hurt this much.

"Someone has a dirty mouth," Ikuto chuckles. I'm about to shoot a glare at him when he does something surprising. Ikuto grabs my hand and lifts it up to his mouth, planting a soft, gentle, warm kiss on my thumb. My face turns red as a warm tingly feeling shoots through my body. He pulls away and glances at me, causing another fluttery feeling in my stomach, "Better?"

I blink a couple of times and bolt up from my seat, "U-Um, I b-better get going. I d-don't want my family t-to worry!" I stumble over my own feet a couple of times as I head for the door.

Ikuto is already by my side again, "Let me walk you home,"

"NO! Oh, um.. I mean, I d-don't want to cause you any t-trouble!" I try not to look at him as I keep walking.

"It doesn't really matter," he smirks and walks beside me. Aw, crap.

After a long awkward walk, we finally reach my house, "This is it... Uh, thanks for walking me home..," I avert my eyes and step to my door, "See ya."

Ikuto smirks, "Ja ne, Amu." He turns away and I rush inside up to my room, trying to figure out why I felt so warm and tingly when he touched me.

**~Chapter End~**

**Woo hoo, finally chapter 2! Hahaha it rhymes xD**

**Soo, how'd you like chapter 2? Sorry if it's lame. I was suffering from writer's block Dx**

**Anyways, please R&R and tell me what you think! I can't wait to hear your opinions :)**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	3. Poor Me

Wow! I really wanted to express my gratitude for all you guys reading this. If your reading this right as I upload it or as much as ten years in the future, I wanted to thank you!

I'm so happy with how many more people noticed this story after the second chapter was out! Once again, thanks everyone!

So, here's my quicker update on chapter 3! Enjoy~

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

"If you take the length of the hypotenuse and subtract it by the area of the triangle, what will the new area of the triangle be?" I read my math question out loud, hoping that by hearing it I will understand it more. However, I don't.

I groan and rest my head on my desk, closing my eyes in frustration, "I'll never understand this!" I sigh.

"Amu-chan!" I hear my mother calling me from downstairs, "Can you come down here for a second?"

I let out a snort of exasperation and stand up, walking toward my door and down the stairs. "What is it, Mama?" I ask as I enter the kitchen.

My mother is standing by the fridge, holding the door open as she peers inside, "Well, I was planning on making your favorite chicken miso soup tonight, but I don't seem to have all the right ingredients. Do you mind running to the supermarket for me?" she glances at me before returning her gaze to the inside of the refrigerator.

My eyes brighten as my mom mentions my absolute favorite dinner, "Sure!" I grab my wallet and head out the front door.

Yay, chicken miso soup! Finally something that will make my week a bit better.

I struggle as I try to make sense of all of the unfortunate happenings that have been occurring to me. Sure they're simple little mishaps, but their still oddly happening all at once.

I shake my head and focus on the ingredients for chicken miso soup. I have memorized them all. What can I say?

I walk into town admiring the beautiful shades of pink the sky's turning as the sun slowly makes it's way to the horizon. In my daze, I don't even seem to notice how crowded the street becomes as I walked into town. It's always like this, but not usually at this hour. Especially on a Wednesday night.

I hear music as I walk farther into the crowd of people and try to make my way toward the supermarket.

As I stumble through the people, I see a stage in the distance. Apparently some music festival's going on. I shrug and walk towards the market that is now in eyesight.

Something brushes up against my back pocket of my jeans as I swirl around and try to see who just touched me. Because there are so many people around, I can't tell who it was. However, I do notice two older men making their way away from me quickly, almost as if they didn't want to be caught doing something.

I blink a couple of times and shake my head, returning my pace toward the market.

I quickly gather all the ingredients for dinner and set them on the cashier's counter top, not wanting to be caught walking alone on the streets while it was dark.

"That'll be 1534 yen, please," the woman behind the cash register said, sounding a bit groggy from lack of sleep, probably.

I reach for my back pocket to grab my wallet and gasp. Where's my wallet? I check every single pocket but can't find it anywhere! The woman behind the counter looks at me expectingly. I blush in embarrassment and search my pockets for the second time. Dammit! It's not here!

I laugh, embarrassed, "I can't seem to find my wallet..." The woman sighs and starts to unpack the grocery bags, "Wait! Um, let me call my mom. Hold on," I walk toward the door and lean on the glass, dialing my home phone.

Where could my wallet have gone? I'm almost positive I grabbed it before I left the house. No, I'm sure of it! Then where'd it go?

I gasp as I remember the slight touch I felt on my backside earlier. At the moment, I thought it was some pervert, but it couldn't have been! I remember I put my wallet in my back pocket of my pants. Those two guys I saw that were rushing away from me must have stolen it! Because there was a large crowd, no one payed attention to it!

"Hello?" my mother answers the phone, pulling me out of deep thought.

"Mama, I'm at the market, but I can't find my wallet! I swore I brought it.. I think a pickpocket stole it!"

I hear a distinct sigh from the other line, "Amu, someone stole your wallet?"

I nod, "Yes! I swear I didn't mean for it to happen, though! There was a huge crowd and I couldn't see who it was."

"Alright. I'll be right there," she hangs up but not before I hear another sigh escape her lips.

I sigh as well. Maybe my misfortune _isn't_ letting up.

**xxx**

I stare at the crumpled piece of paper between my fingers and read the carefully written numbers on it. Should I call him? He _did_ tell me to call him if anything bad happened to me... Would it be weird if I called him? He gave it to me on Monday, and it's now Thursday.

I sit on the park bench contemplating whether to call Ikuto or not after a dog almost teared me to shreds before it's owner caught up with it.

I take a deep breath and enter the numbers into my cell, listening to the soft, purring ring.

Things haven't really been going all that well for me. This week has been filled with bad luck. Ikuto insisted that I call him if any more bad luck was thrust my way, but until now I was too nervous to call the boy I met only last Saturday.

On the third ring, Ikuto picks up, his deep, monotone voice warped a bit from the phone, "Hello?"

"Uh.. hi! It's Amu..." I mumble into my cell, kind of nervous.

"Well then, hello my little strawberry."

I blush dark red, thankful he can't see me, "Your little what!?"

"Strawberry!" he chuckles, "Your hair, you see.. It reminds me of a strawberry. Especially when you blush," I hear him snicker, making me even more embarrassed.

"Baka!" I growl.

I can just picture Ikuto flashing his famous smirk right about now, "So, you rang?"

"O-Oh right. Well.." I pause, the meaning of this call sounding dumb in my head, "Uh, you said if anything bad happens I can talk to you about it.." I mumble, my voice getting quieter with every word.

"Indeed I did," he pauses, waiting for me to go on.

I take another deep breath and recall what happened in town yesterday, "Well, um.. I was in town yesterday and some pickpocket took my wallet as I was heading to the market to buy stuff for dinner. My mom ended up having to come all the way to the market to pay," I sigh, "And just now some rabid dog chased after me and almost ripped my ass off." This earns a chuckle from Ikuto, and I glare at the phone, "It isn't funny!"

"Just the way you stated it," he snickers, "Sounds like some bad luck to me."

"No shit sherlock."

"Language, Amu."

I roll my eyes and listen to the awkward silence. Isn't he gonna say something? Apparently not. "Um, and I've been having bad luck all week. Ever since I ran into you, actually," I smirk at this.

"So you're saying it's my fault?" he chuckles, "Well let's see; which time you ran into me, exactly? You see, there were multiple."

"The first time!" I growl. He makes me seem like a klutz. Well, I guess I sort of am.

"Hm. Well that's too bad."

I blink, "That's it?"

"What?"

"You don't have anything comforting to say, or any advise?"

"Uh, nope. But if you want, I can come wrap you in my arms and hold you until you fall asleep. How's that for comforting?"

I turn bright red and try not to let my voice waver, "No!"

He chuckles, "Then what else do you want, perverted kid?"

"I'm not perverted!" I yell into the phone, causing many people to throw worried glances my way as they walk by me. I flush in embarrassment and try not to make eye contact with anyone, "I just thought you gave me your number for a reason."

"There is a reason. It's so I can keep informed on the happenings that occur in my little strawberry's life."

I don't think my face can turn any redder, "S-Stop calling me your l-little strawberry!"

"Aw, but you're all red now aren't you? That makes you resemble a strawberry even more," he states teasingly.

Okay, _now_ I don't think my face can turn any redder, "S-Shut up!"

"As you wish, strawberry."

And right when I thought Ikuto was being sweet. I growl and stand from the park bench, only to trip over the garbage can to my right, "Ah!" I yelp as I fall to the ground.

"Lemme guess, you fell again?"

I glare at the phone, "BAKA!"

Ikuto just laughs, "Too bad I wasn't there to catch you."

"Whatever." I scowl and try to rub the grass stains from my pants.

"Ikutooo!" I hear a girl's voice from Ikuto's line, "Ikutoo, come here!"

Jealously washes over me at the thought of Ikuto hanging out with other girls.

Wait a minute, did I really just think that?

Ikuto sighs, "I gotta go. My sister's being an idiot. Talk to you later, Amu. Oh, and expect calls from me in the future. After all, I have your number now," he chuckles and hangs up.

What the hell is that suppose to mean?

I can't help feeling a little happy when Ikuto said the girl was his sister. Wait, what am I thinking? Why would I feel jealous in the first place?

I shake my head as I flip my phone closed and stand up. I stare at the ice cream stand in the park longingly, then remember that I don't have a wallet anymore. I sigh and make my way home.

Poor me.

**~Chapter End~**

**Yay! I updated!**

**Sorry everyone, I was so focused on my other fan fics. If you'd like, I'd love for you to check them out as well! :D**

**Anyways, sorry this chappie's a bit boring, but I'll try to make the story line come in soon! :)**

**R&R! Arigato gosaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	4. What A Ride

YAY! MORE VIEWS! xD

I love you all so much, thank you guys for your support! :D

And now, chapter 4(which I got the idea for while going out to dinner and sitting on a bench, waiting for our table to be ready)!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

It's really happening! Oh my god, I can't believe it's actually happening!

Hotori Tadase, the cutest boy in school(the one who every girl wants to date, and the one who I have had a major crush on since I came to this school), asked me out! He actually asked me out! Ah, I feel so jumpy and happy!

"Okay, honey, you'll get a ride home with Hotori-kun's mom, right?" I nod as I step out of my mom's car, smiling at the entrance to the amusement park, "Good, because Ami is sleeping over at a friend's tonight and Dad and I are working. Have a nice time!" I wave and she drives away.

I smile with giddiness and lean against the wall next to the entrance, waiting for Tadase-kun to show up.

It was like a miracle. It just came out of the blue! During my free period yesterday, Tadase-kun just came up to me and asked if I wanted to come to the amusement park today! I was totally surprised. I mean, we've talked, but never really as friends or anything!

Ah, finally something to ease my bad luck.

I lean against the wall, waiting. I pull out my phone and check the time; 2:27pm. He said he'd meet me here at 2:30, so he's still got 3 minutes. I hum a quiet melody as I wait for Tadase-kun to arrive.

Suddenly, my phone starts to ring, causing me to jump. I flip it open and answer, "Hello?"

"Ah, Hinamori-san? It's Hotori Tadase. I know we planned on getting together today, but it turns out I can't make it! My grandmother's health is bad, so I have to stay with her today. Gomennasai!"

I stare at the ground, my eyes widening. I knew it was too good to be true. Especially with my bad luck. Of course. I try to not make my voice waver as I reply, "N-No! That's okay. Y-You should be with your grandmother. I'll see you at school," I press 'End' and hang my head, my disappointment clearly showing.

Shit. And I was really looking forward to going to the amusement park. Especially with my crush...

I sigh. I still have enough money for me, but it's just depressing going by myself.

Oh great. I just realized that I'm probably gonna be stuck here! My parent's are working, and Tadase-kun's mom was going to drive me home!

I subconsciously pull out my phone again and dial a number. The familiar purring ring sounds until he picks up, "Amu," I can basically see him smiling.

"H-Hi Ikuto," I rub my watery eyes.

"Hey, shouldn't you be on your date with kiddy-king? You were basically bragging about it to me yesterday," I cough and try to hold back tears, "Something wrong?"

"A-Ah, nothing. H-He just couldn't do it after all," I shrug, still rubbing my eyes to make sure tears don't fall.

"Aw, really? Well I'll get revenge on him for you. He'll pay-"

"N-No, don't! I mean, you shouldn't. I-It's okay."

"You sure?"

"Mhm," I nod and cross my arms across my chest, keeping the phone next to my ear with my shoulder, "I'm just sorta stuck at the amusement park entrance. My parents are working so they can't pick me up, and it's too far to walk home," I let out a short, forced laugh, "He was my ride home."

"Wait, he can drive? Isn't he in your grade?"

"Uh, yeah. His mom was gonna drive."

"Heh, he's not worth it," he states, "So your just stranded there?"

"Well I guess I could walk, but it would take a while..," I reply. I'm not really up for walking, especially when it would take me up to an hour or longer.

"Oh strawberry, you don't have to worry! Have you forgotten that I'm older than you?"

"Huh?"

"I have a license. I'll be there in five minutes to pick you up, ok strawberry?"

"D-Don't call me strawberry!" I blush.

"I'll take that as a thank you," he chuckles and hangs up.

I hang up the phone and stuff it in my jacket's pocket, my face dark red. Why did I call Ikuto? I honestly have no idea. At least now I'm not on the verge of tears anymore... I lean against the wall, waiting yet again and wondering just why bad things seem to be attracted to me like I'm some sort of magnet!

A couple of minutes have passed, probably five, when my phone vibrates. I flip it open and see that it's a message from Ikuto.

"Hey, come to parking lot. Love, Ikuto."

My cheeks turn a rosy pink color. Why'd he have to write 'Love' in front of his name?

I blink and start walking towards the parking lot, which isn't very far at all. Once I get there, I start looking around, trying to see if I can spot the familiar blue hair anywhere from where I'm standing.

I feel a tap on my shoulder causing me to spin around, then sigh in relief when I see Ikuto standing in front of me, a leather jacket on and a helmet in his hand. His hair is messy, but it also couldn't look more perfect.

"Hey, Amu," he smiles.

I blink a couple of times, staring at the helmet in his hands, "Why are you dressed like that? And, why do you have a helmet? D-Don't tell me-"

He grins and spins me around, pointing me towards a beautiful black motorcycle. I gasp. Oh great..., "Ikuto, you can't be telling the truth!"

"And why not, exactly?" he smirks and walks to the motorcycle, grabbing a second helmet from the handles(smaller than his, that only goes on the top of my head, instead of my whole head like his). I stare, my mouth wide open, "Come on, it'll be fine."

I blink, then look back at Ikuto, unsure, "It looks dangerous.."

"It won't be as long as you're with me," he smirks and I blush gently, looking back at the bike to hide my redness.

"T-The seat looks like it's only big enough for one person..," I look at the seat, then back to Ikuto.

"Oh, I'm sure we can squeeze on there. Here," he holds the helmet up to me, waiting for me to grab it. I look at him, uneasy. He sighs and puts the helmet on for me, causing me to blush faintly at the touch.

He places his helmet on the handles and climbs on easily, motioning me to get on as well.

I blink and walk over, climbing on with difficulty. He helps me up then turns back around. Oh wow, apparently we both _do_ fit.

"Remember to hold on tight," I see one last grin before he pulls his helmet over his head. I do as I'm told and wrap my arms firmly around him, blushing furiously. I would never do this if I wasn't so afraid I would fall off and die!

The roar of the engine coming to life hurts my ears. It's much louder than a car's engine. I try to keep my eyes open as Ikuto slowly backs out of the parking spot, his feet tapping the ground every once and a while while doing so. Fear spreads throughout my body as the engine roars again, indicating the start of going forward. However, I didn't know we were going forward yet because my eyes were already shut tight, never to open again. I cling onto Ikuto, my face resting against his toned back.

I notice the signs of motion as the wind rips at my clothes, threatening to blow me away. The wind would be worse, but Ikuto blocks most of it for me. He's the one wearing the leather jacket, after all.

Feeling bold, I open my eyes, only to gasp at how fast we're going. I look at the car to my right, noticing that they are going the same speed. Maybe it's just that being in a motorcycle makes it feel faster...

Ikuto pulls to the right and I yelp in horror as gravity pulls me down. I feel as if I'm going to fall, so I cling on to Ikuto even tighter. I'm surprised he hasn't died from suffocation yet. I shut my eyes yet again only to notice the earth slowing down. Soon, we've come to a complete stop. I take the chance to open my eyes, expecting to see my house. Instead, I see the lake. The lake a mile or so away from the park.

Ikuto pulls off his helmet, his hair perfect even when sticking out strangely and attempts to climb off the bike but stops for some reason. He turns around, grinning, "Um, Amu," he points to his torso where my arms are still tightly wrapped around.

I blush dark red as I peel my arms from him, "G-Gomen!" He laughs and climbs off the bike, offering a hand to help me off now that I'm no longer holding on to anything sturdy. Loud ringing sounds at my ears from the bike's noisy engine mixed with the loud wind as I grab Ikuto's hand and stumble off the bike. When my feet touch the ground, I loose my balance and yelp as I fall into Ikuto. He catches me with ease, chuckling.

"You should work on not falling," he smirks.

I blush and push away from him, regaining my balance. He gently undoes my helmet, causing my face to heat up yet again, "Ne, Ikuto? Why are we at the lake? I thought you were taking me home."

"Well," he places my helmet on the handles next to his, "Your date was ruined, so I thought we could do something," he smirks.

"L-Like what?" I ask, my voice clearly showing my embarrassment.

"Like, this! Come on, strawberry," he smiles and takes my hand as he leads me to the lake. I pull my hand away, blushing, then he turns and smirks at me, "Just wanted to make sure you regained your balance."

We walk over to the lake and I admire the sun's reflections on the water. I glance at Ikuto, wanting to thank him for bringing me here but pause when I see him staring at me, a grin on his face.

"Ikuto, what are you-" I freeze as he unzips my jacket and takes off my shirt, leaving me in an undershirt and jeans. He picks me up and throws me over his shoulder, "IKUTO!" I scream, punching his back, "Put me down!"

He brings me to the water, "Okay," he chuckles and tosses me into the water. I shiver as icy water hits my skin when I splash through the surface.

I hold my breath until I resurface, gasping for air, "BAKA!" I yell. Ikuto already has his jacket, shirt and shoes off as he runs toward the water, jumping in. I gasp as cold water splashes over my skin. I kick frantically, trying to warm up until Ikuto resurfaces, "You jerk! What was that for!?"

He frowns, "Aw, is my little strawberry cold?"

"Yes, I am, actually! In case you haven't noticed, it's September!" I growl through gritted teeth, my arms hugging my cool skin.

"In that case, let me warm you up!" he smirks and swims toward me.

"NO!" I desperately try to swim away, but my cold legs won't do much at the moment.

"It'll warm up, don't worry," he smiles as he easily catches up to me and wraps his arms around me, pulling my back to his bare chest. My face turns red, causing some heat to finally surface. Ikuto's skin is warmer than mine, but I don't know why, "Better?"

I struggle not to say yes, but it is better. He actually is warming me up, "Um, a-a little.."

He chuckles and loosens his grip around me, then turns me around so I'm facing him. He presses his body against mine and wraps one arm around my waist, his other hand holding my chin up to look at him, "Don't bother with that Hotori kid, okay?" he mumbles and I nod, getting hypnotized by his captivating blue eyes.

Wait a minute, what am I thinking!? Why would I listen to this idiot telling me not to bother with my crush? And right after he asked me out, too! Why would he care?

I avert my eyes after several moments pass with us in that position. I feel his intense gaze on me, but instead of cool like I'm expecting, it's warm, "Amu, I-"

RING RING RING RING

Oh shit, my phone is in my jacket pocket!

RING RING RING RING

I turn to Ikuto, who is still holding me tightly in his grasp, "Ah, I-Ikuto, I have to get that. I-It might be my parents or something."

Ikuto hesitates for a moment, then lets go and allows me to swim to the edge. I climb out of the icy water, shivering as the cool wind hits my skin.

RING RING RING RING

Shut up! I run to my jacket and pull my phone out of the pocket. Looking at the collar ID, I see that it's Mom. I flip the phone open and answer, "Mom?"

I hear crying on the other end, and that's when I know something is wrong, "Mom! Are you alright!? What's happening!?"

"A-Amu," she says between sobs, "Y-Your father.. He, he just got in an accident. A-Amu, he.." she trails off, sobbing even harder now.

"MOM!" I yell into the phone. From what I got out of it, Dad was in a bad accident. Tears come to my eyes as I consider the possibilities, "Mom, what happened!? Is he gonna be okay!?"

"A-Amu... H-He's dead!"

I drop the phone out of my hands and stare into the air, my vision getting blurry by the tears. I crumple to the ground and barely feel Ikuto's warm arms wrap around me, desperately trying to figure out what's wrong.

**~Chapter End~**

**Oh no! No, Amu's dad's dead! Gosh, who knew...**

**Hehe, well there you have it! The 4th chapter! Yes, I updated really fast because I just got the idea today and I didn't wanna forget it. Well, I hope you all liked it! And if you did, please review, favorite and follow! It's much appreciated. :D**

**Arigato gosaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	5. Tears

Hey guys! Wow, it's been a while since I updated xD I was having a bit of writers block, but the idea for this chapter soon came to me :)

Do enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

My body has gone numb. Partially because I'm soaking wet, and it's not exactly the warmest weather, but also because I just got the most shocking news in my life. No tears are coming, however, which is quite surprising.

I cling onto Ikuto as we ride on his motorcycle to the hospital, my face expressionless. The ride's not that scary anymore. In fact, I'm not even paying attention. My mind's on one thing, and one thing only.

I-I can't believe it. No, I won't believe it. Not until I see it for myself.

I barely notice the bike screech to a stop in the ER parking lot. Ikuto quickly gets off and takes my hand, helping me off and running to the doors, still hand in hand. We walk straight to the reception desk and wait for the lady to move the glass. She stares at us, her eyebrows raised as she notices our wet hair and clothes.

"This is Hinamori Tsumugu's daughter," Ikuto says and gestures to me. I have no clue how he found out my dad's name. Has he been stalking me or something?

The lady behind the desk nods and tells a man sitting behind her to lead us to the room.

The man leads Ikuto and I to a room not far from the reception desk, and opens the door for us. We walk in to hear loud wails from my mother. I let go of Ikuto's hand and rush over to her. It's only then do I notice the large figure on the bed. It's covered by hospital blankets, but you can still see that it is a person.

It's my dad.

I crouch down beside my mom, tears streaming down my face. Why did this have to happen!?

Ikuto hesitantly walks over to my mother and I, and sits down next to me. He wraps his arm around my shoulder and pulls me in. I don't refuse as he pushes my face to his chest, his other hand on the back of my head, pulling it close to him protectively. Tears pour down my face as Ikuto's scent surrounds me. It's nice, almost like clean cat hair, and it's kind of soothing.

My mother, however, does not have anyone to embrace her.

What is Ami going to think about this? Does she know already? Has mom already told her? No.. I doubt she has..

I grab onto Ikuto's wet shirt, relying on his skin to warm me and make me feel comfortable again. I try to focus on the temperature of my body instead of what's lying in front of me. I can't think about that.. I can't..

"A-Amu.." my mother chokes out my name finally. I listen but don't turn around. I don't want Ikuto to let go of me.. I don't want his warm skin to move from mine..

"Amu," she says again, "P-Promise me you w-won't leave me.. O-Okay?" I barely understand her because she's still sobbing.

"P-Promise...," I mutter through Ikuto's wet shirt.

**xxx**

I stare into the bright orange flames, mesmerized by the motions of the fire. No one else was by the bonfire, only me. Everyone else was inside my house, mingling, enjoying the after party of the funeral.

Huh, after party. I snort. I honestly don't know why a funeral would have an after party. Shouldn't people mourn then go home to pray or something instead of mourn then party? I don't get it.

I hug my body tightly as I stare down at the small fire pit. There are chairs beside me, but I don't sit down. My legs are too stiff.

I hear footsteps behind me and turn to see a certain blue haired teenager standing beside me. He's wearing a suit and tie, and frowning down at me. I honestly don't know why he came to the funeral. It's not like he knew my dad or anything. None the less, I liked having him there. Although I hate to admit it, it was nice to have someone to cling to as I cried through the whole thing. My mother, however, still had no one. I tried to hug her, but she wouldn't let me near her. She didn't want to cling to me, she wanted to cry by herself. Ami sat on my lap, crying into my chest as I cried into Ikuto's. It was an odd position, but it was comfortable.

"Amu, Gomen...," he starts but I stop him.

"You've done nothing wrong. Don't apologize," I turn my head back to the flames and sigh.

"I know it's just-"

"Amu!" Ikuto's cut off yet again by the sound of Rima's voice. I turn and see her running up to me, panting. She really can't run very well on those small legs of hers, "Amu, there you are. I've been trying to find you," she smiles at me the turns her gaze to Ikuto. She looks a bit surprised at first, then her face fills with memorization, "You must be Ikuto."

I stare, confused, at my best friend. How'd she know about Ikuto? Oh yeah, that time at the festival, right after I ran into him...

"Yeah," Ikuto says and turns his head toward the fire.

Rima nods and looks back at me. Any other time, she would start teasing me about him, but not today. Not now. She leans toward me and gives me a huge hug her small arms not even touching behind my back. I smile gently as she pulls away, "I'm sorry about your father.. I know it's rude, but I have to leave early. My parents really want me home," she sighs, "I'll text you tonight, Amu. Take care," she turns and runs off without waiting for a reply.

I stare at the ground for a moment then return my gaze to the familiar pattern of the flames.

"Amu," Ikuto says abruptly after a long moment of silence. I jump slightly, forgetting that he was still here.

I look at him, "What is it?"

Ikuto doesn't move his gaze from the fire, "When did this start happening, again? You told me once before, but I can't remember."

I furrow my eyebrows and look at him, confused at his question, "When did what start happening?"

"The bad luck."

I stare at him. What the hell is he thinking? "Um.. I don't remember.. Uh.. Oh that's right! It was right after I met you.."

He frowns and looks at me, "That's not good.."

I shake my head, "I suppose I could blame it all on you, but I know a person like you couldn't be behind this."

Ikuto smiles, "Oh really? What kind of person am I, exactly?"

I glare at him. Why is he teasing me at a time like this? "I don't know, but I'm not blaming you cause it wouldn't be possible! You were with me when my dad..." I pause and stare at the ground, "You know..."

Ikuto grabs my hand and gives it a light squeeze, then brings it to his lips, "I'm sorry about the bad things that are happening to you..," I blush softly and look away from him.

"L-Like I said before, it's not your fault.."

"But these things started happening right after you met me," he frowns again.

I pull my hand away from him and turn around, "Whatever. It doesn't matter when they started, I just want them to stop," I ball my hands into fists and walk slowly toward my house. I need to get some sleep, but it's not like any sleep will come to me.

I walk through the back door of my house and weave my way through the mingling people in search of my mother. I want to tell her I'm going to bed, but I can't seem to find her anywhere. After searching everywhere, I give up and head upstairs. Just as I'm about to open the door to my bedroom, I hear the sound of muffled crying from down the hall. I tiptoe my way to my parents'- well, my _mother's_ bedroom door and press my ear to it. Sure enough, I hear my mother sobbing. A few tears leave my own eyes as I walk away from the door and enter my room.

I knew I was having bad luck, but I didn't think it would get _this_ bad.

**xxx**

"Come on, Onee-chan! Masa-chan is gonna be at the pawrk today and she said she's gonna be walking her dowggy!" Ami's eyes beamed.

"B-But..," I glance at my pile of homework and sigh. Sunday is my homework day, but ever since dad died I've been a lot more busy. Usually it would be mom taking Ami, but she's been spending a lot of time in her room.

Ami looked at me, her eyes begging. I sigh and stand up from my desk, "Fine."

Ami cheers and takes my hand, pulling me down the stairs and out of the door, not allowing me to grab my jacket. It was getting cold outside, "Ami, I have to get my jacket!" I try to pull my hand away from her.

"No, we have to go to the pawrk now, or Masa-chan isn't gonna be there!" she argues and I sigh, letting her drag me down the street. Sure enough, once we get to the park, Ami runs off to greet her friend. I take a deep breath and take a seat on my signature park bench. Whenever I come to the park, I always end up sitting on this particular bench.

"How'd I know you'd be here today?" I gasp and turn around, seeing the tall blue-haired boy towering over me.

"Ikuto!" I blush gently. Why does he always surprise me? And how does he do it so easily?

He smiles and sits down beside me on the bench. I turn my head the other way and rest my chin on my palm. I really don't know how Ikuto and I got so close after only knowing each other for a month or so. I mentally shrug, not knowing and not caring. I sigh and shiver as a cool wind blows.

Suddenly, I feel wait on my shoulders, then warmth on my arms and back. I look and see that Ikuto has placed his jacket on top of my shoulders, "What are you doing out here with no jacket? You'll catch a cold," I blush deeply and look away.

"A-Arigato..." I mutter, not bothering to tell him that Ami dragged me out of the house so fast that I couldn't get my jacket. I pull the jacket on more, and smile slightly as I feel warmth instantly. Ikuto's smell surrounds me and I can't help but feel happy.

Wait a minute, I feel happy? I shouldn't feel happy... Well, maybe..

"S-So, what are you doing here?" I turn my gaze back to his.

He smirks, "I honestly don't know," I nod slowly and fiddle with a loose patch on the jacket. I notice Ikuto's gaze on my hands, and they instantly start shaking in embarrassment. I pray he doesn't notice.

"That's a pretty bracelet," he reaches over and touches the golden chain. I completely forgot I was wearing that! I haven't taken it off since the day I bought it.

"O-Oh, yeah.. I got it at the festival I went to right after I ran into you for the first time," I smile slightly.

He stares at the bracelet, his forehead creased for a moment, "Right after you ran into me..," he mumbles to himself then grins, "I like it," What was he thinking for a second there? He runs his finger along it and I blush, glad he's not looking at my face. Suddenly, his grin goes away and I look at him, confused, "What the hell?"

"What is it?" I ask.

He pulls his hand way and looks at his fingers. Each fingertip that touched the bracelet has a cut on it, blood slowly oozing out.

"W-What!?" I stare at the bracelet and run my fingers along it, "It isn't sharp or anything..," I grab Ikuto's hand and examine the cuts, "Where did these come from?"

"That bracelet is strange..," I look at him. Did he really think the bracelet cut his fingers? Well, I guess it is kinda suspicious. I mean, what else could it have been.

I stand up, "I'll be right back," I dash to the ice cream stand that's always in the center of the park and ask for a couple napkins. Then I walk to the water fountain and get one napkin damp. I rush back over to Ikuto and grab his injured hand again. I dab his fingers gently with the wet napkin until all the blood is cleaned up. Then I tear small pieces of the other napkin and gently place them on each finger, pressing them down gently but hard enough to have them stick on his damp skin. I smile up at him, "There."

"Wonder what that was all about."

**~Chapter End~**

**Hmm, mysterious! xD**

**What's going on with that bracelet? If you liked this chapter(which I hope you did) please review! :D It means a lot when I get good reviews :)**

**Anyways, thanks everyone for favoring, following, and reviewing! It makes my day when I get home and see that I've got tons of good reviews for my stories. Thanks so much!**

**So school is starting up again(BOOO) which means I won't be updating as fast and as much.. :/ Sorry everyone! I'll try to update A.S.A.P, but please be patient(not that you aren't already! I really love you all for being so patient).**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	6. Empty

THIS STORY IS SO SUCCESSFUL! Thanks so much, everyone! I'm _so_ happy! :D

Sorry for the long wait for this chapter.. School isn't fun :(

Well here you go everyone; chapter 6! xD

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

Something just isn't right...

Ever since that day I first met Ikuto, I've had the worst luck. What happened that day that triggered all this misfortune?

I scroll through the memories in my mind of that day, trying to remember everything I did. The jingling sound of a text message brings me back to the present and I check my phone. It's from Ikuto:

"Come outside," is all it says. I stare at the screen, confused. Was he outside or something? I sigh and grab my jacket. It looks pretty cold out today, and now I'm just waiting until the first day it snows. I exit my room and walk towards my mother's.

"Mom?" I knock gently on the door, "I'm going out for a walk. I'll be back soon," I wait for a reply, but hear nothing. I quietly push the door open and see my mother lying in bed, facing the other way. I sigh and close the door. She never sleeps in this late, so she's probably just sulking. She's been acting like this since Dad died.

Thankfully, Ami is at a friend's house. Otherwise, I'd have to stay home and babysit her.

I dash down the stairs, surprisingly really eager to leave the house. Opening the door, I see Ikuto leaning on a tree in our front yard. Once he sees me, he smiles, "Hey Amu."

I blink then close the door behind me as I walk over to him, "What are you doing here?" I glare at him, not wanting to admit that I was kinda happy to see him. I-It's only because it's nice to have company other than my little sister, that's all...

"Take a walk with me," he says, not answering the question. I roll my eyes, but follow him anyway when he starts walking along the sidewalk, "So what took you so long?"

I sigh, "My mom's still in bed. She hasn't been doing much since... _that_," I look down, not wanting to talk about it.

Ikuto looks down at me, a frown on his face, "I'm sorry. She must be very upset. But I'm sure she'll get over it soon and go back to being motherly," he says and reaches down to grab my hand.

I pull my hand away and look the other way. I know Ikuto's just trying to comfort me, but I don't want to talk about it. I decide to change the subject, "So why did you want to take a walk?"

"I've been thinking about the bad luck, and I think I figured something out," I stare at him, wide-eyed. He figured something out!

"What is it?"

"You started getting bad luck the day we met, and at the beginning it was only things that would be unfortunate to you, but now I think it has spread. Now not only will the bad things affect you, but they will also affect the people you're close to. Do you know what I mean?"

I stare straight ahead and nod. The bad things were beginning to get worse, and now bad things will happen to the people I love, causing me to mourn... I can't help tears from coming to my eyes, "I-Ikuto, what should I do!? It's all my fault my dad's dead!" I yell, tears streaming down my cheeks as I bury my face in my hands. I stop walking and Ikuto pulls me close to him.

"It's not your fault.. Don't worry..," he hugs me to his chest and I quickly wipe my tears away. I've cried to much, I can't keep relying on Ikuto to comfort me. I pull away from Ikuto and continue walking, wiping my face with my jacket.

"I-I just don't want anything bad to happen anymore.. Especially not to my family.."

Ikuto nods, "Yeah."

We walk in silence until we reach the park, then we decide to turn around and head back to my house. On the way back, a man is walking his Shiba Inu dog in the other direction. As we walk by it, it runs over to me and circles my legs. I smile and bend down to pet it, "Aww, you're so cute!" I giggle as it licks my hand and barks happily. I look up to the owner, "What's it's name?"

"Her name is Reiko," the owner smiles.

"Hey, Reiko!" I pet het ears and she wags her short tail. I turn around to Ikuto, who is still standing behind me, looking kind of annoyed, "What's wrong Ikuto, don't you like dogs?"

He shakes his head, a disgusted look on his face, "No, I hate them, actually."

I frown and continue to pet Reiko. Suddenly, Reiko barks and chomps down on my hand. I shriek and jump up, staring at the dog in surprise, "W-What the hell? It was being so friendly!" I hold my hand in my other hand.

The owner looks as surprised as I am. He grabs his dog by the collar and bows to me, "Gomenasai! I don't know what's gotten into her, she never bites."

I look down at my hand, the bite marks oozing a little blood, "I-It's alright..," Ikuto rushes over to me and takes my hand.

"Are you okay?"

I nod and allow him to examine my hand as the owner and his dog walk away. Ikuto glares at them as they go by, then he rips off some fabric from his jacket, wrapping it around my injured hand.

"Ikuto! What are you doing?" I stare at his ruined jacket.

"What? I'm helping," he states as he ties it gently around my hand.

"Now you won't be able to wear that jacket anymore," I frown and Ikuto just shrugs.

"Why, did you like it that much Amu?" Ikuto smirks, and I glare at him.

"Actually, yes. I did like it. Too bad." I take my hand away from him once he's finished, "And um.. arigato," I continue walking.

**xxx**

I shift in my bed uncomfortably and lay on my side, staring at my alarm clock. It read 2:56am. I groan and shut my eyes, wishing sleep would come. Ever since my dad died, sleep has been very hard to come by.

Suddenly, a loud thump from somewhere in my room causes my heart to jump and my eyes fly open. I scan the room, breathing quickly. I see nothing, but my heart is still racing. What was that?

Deciding that something must have fallen over in my closet, I close my eyes again, but this time burying my head under the blanket.

_THUMP_

I hear the noise again and I gasp, burying myself deeper in the blankets. What is going on?

A cool breeze makes the hairs on my arms go on end, and I can hear my heart beating quickly. Wait a minute, how is there a breeze under the blankets? And I'm positive I didn't open the window..

I feel a tug on my wrist and I quickly run my hand along it, feeling the golden bracelet beneath my fingers. Did the chain just move?

I shut my eyes tighter and pray for sleep, wanting these strange happenings to just stop.

**xxx**

I'm quiet through school, only speaking when the teacher asked me a question, or when I had to go to the bathroom. I didn't speak with Rima much because after she finished her lunch(which she obviously rushed through eating) she ditched me and hung out with some other kids. One was a tall blond haired girl, her hair put up in two pigtails, who looked a little older than me. There were two boys, too; one was kind of short, but still taller than Rima who had long purple hair, and the other was always with the tall blond, and he had messy brown hair. He also looked a little older than me.

After school I walked to the entrance and looked around, desperately wanting to tell Ikuto about what happened last night. I spot the blue haired teenager in the crowd and I'm about to walk over to him until I'm tapped on the shoulder.

"Well if it isn't _Hinamori Amu_!" I turn to see the group of girls who threatened me for talking to Ikuto a couple weeks ago and I back up nervously, "You were going to go to Ikuto-kun, weren't you?" the girl with the red curls glares at me.

"N-No I wasn't, I swear!"

The girls just scowl at me, "Stay away from him, brat," she narrows her eyes, "How many times do I have to tell you?"

"No! I wasn't-"

"Ikuto-kun!" the girl interrupts me a she looks behind me, her expression brightening, then darkening again as I feel an arm around my shoulder. I look over to see Ikuto hugging me close to him. I blush immediately as I look at him smirking at me.

"Are these girls bothering you, Amu-koi?" I blush deep red and the girls shoot me death glares. I avert my eyes and look at the ground as Ikuto drags me away, "Your welcome," he mutters when we're out of earshot with the group.

"Ah, arigato..," Ikuto lets go of me, and I blink at him, remembering what I want to tell him, "Um, Ikuto? Something strange happened last night..," I shiver at the frightening memory. I'm deathly afraid of scary things, and hearing noises in the middle of the night really freaks me out.

Ikuto looks at me, "What was it?" he asks as we start walking.

"Um," How do I explain? "Well I couldn't sleep last night, so then around three in the morning I started hearing these noises. They were like big loud thuds that sounded like they were coming from inside my room. Then I felt a cool breeze, but my window was shut and there was no air circulation.. And then I felt my bracelet move," I hold up my wrist with the mall chain on it.

Ikuto furrows his eyebrows, "I knew it..," he mutters.

"What?" He knew what?

"Oh," he looks at me and hesitates, "Nothing."

I stare unimpressed at Ikuto, then shrug and look away, "I didn't know what was going on.."

"You think it was a ghost?" he smirks and my heart starts thumping. I'm really scared of ghosts!

"M-Maybe!"

Ikuto rolls his eyes, "Come on, let's go."

We finally arrive at my house and I say goodbye to Ikuto then walk inside. I call, "I'm home!" up the stairs to my mom, assuming she's still in bed.

I walk into the kitchen and grab a granola bar, munching on it slowly as I set my bag down in the living room. I have to go pick up Ami from her dance practice in an hour, so I'll have enough time to take a quick shower.

Finishing my granola bar, I run up the stairs and walk over to the bathroom door. I notice the light is on and I knock on the door, "Mom, are you in there?" Hearing no reply, I turn the handle and push open the door.

It takes a few moments to register what my eyes are seeing, but within seconds I scream, "Mom!" and rush over to her limp body on the floor, "Mom, wake up!" Tears are streaming down my face as I notice that her heart isn't beating. I moan in agony and cry into my mother's cold chest. How long has she been laying here on the cold bathroom floor!? What could have happened!? I see no wounds..

My gaze fixes on a small orange container, the lid off. I reach a shaky hand out and pick it up. It's a pill container, and it's empty.

Empty.

**~Chapter End~**

**Oh no! D:**

**How'd you all like this chapter? I'm sorry if my writing isn't as good in this chapter.. I was feeling very tired xP**

**Anyways, please review, and I'll try to update chapter 7 asap! The next chapter may end up coming out next weekend, possibly sooner if I don't get homework from school, which I probably will Dx**

**Well thank you all for reading, and I'm so happy with the number of reviews this story has. And wow, over 700 views! You guys are really the best ;)**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	7. The Warmth of an Embrace

Ohh quick update! I felt like I should update before the school week starts :)

Enjoy~!(:

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

It's been a week since my mom committed suicide. _Nothing_ has been going right for me.

I lay in bed, the covers pulled up to just below my eyes. The room is illuminated by the afternoon light spilling through the cracks in the shades. I close my eyes and sigh, not wanting to get up.

I have to get up, though. Ami is waiting for me. I'm all she has now.

My mind returns to the memory of the day my dad died, while my mom, Ikuto and I were sitting in the hospital room. Mom made me promise that I wouldn't leave her, and now look! She's gone and left me instead!

I glare at nothing in particular as I reluctantly peel the hot covers off of me, climbing out of bed while still in my pjs. I walk down the stairs to find Ami sitting quietly on the couch, watching TV while curled up into a ball, a small teddy bear wrapped in her grasp. I look at her sadly as I walk toward my little sister, planting a small kiss on the top of her head. She doesn't respond, so I turn away and walk into the kitchen.

I wonder how I would be feeling if I were her age. Would I comprehend it all, or would I think they were coming back in a number of days? Who am I kidding, Ami knew they were gone, and that they weren't coming back. Just because she's younger than me doesn't mean she doesn't understand that.

Although it's nearly 1am, I decide to make myself an egg sandwich. Assuming Ami hasn't eaten anything, I make her one as well. With something as simple as an egg sandwich, I should be able to make it.

Well, I guess I'm wrong.

After burning multiple slices of bread, I give up and decide to not toast the bread at all. Thinking that would solve my problem, I start making the eggs, only to burn myself many times. I mean, who really burns themselves while making eggs? Apparently me..

Deciding that adding any more ingredients would only add to my troubles, I settle with eggs and bread. I take a bite from mine and frown. It's nothing special, but at least it's food.

I bring Ami hers and she just looks at me while taking it, although I can see the grateful look she gives me.

I sit down with Ami but she just shifts uncomfortably. Realizing that she wants to be alone, I stand up and return to my room.

I'm like my mom.

All she did after my dad died was sulk around and do nothing. I scowl and lay back down on the bed, burying myself in the blanket once more. Just as I feel myself drifting off, a tap on my shoulder brings me back to reality.

"Ignoring Ami will do you no good," I mentally groan as I hear Ikuto's voice. Wait- no, I actually groaned aloud.

"I'm not ignoring her," I snap, but refuse to move from my comfortable position to look at him, "She wants to be alone!"

"Come on, out of bed!" he says enthusiastically and I groan again.

I lift one arm(continuing to face the other way) and use two fingers to move up and down in the air right next to Ikuto.

"What are you doing?" he asks, clearly confused.

I make an angry noise, "How many times do I have to flush you before you go away!?"

"I'm sorry."

I blink open my eyes, and look at my blanket. I wasn't expecting this as his reply.. I expected him to laugh or tease me or something, but not apologize. I close my eyes again and return to my annoyed f_açade__, "How many times do I have to tell you? It isn't your fault!" I say sharply, my voice holding a tone a little more angrier than I intended to._

_"That's not what I'm talking about..," he says after a moment and I finally turn toward him, a questioning look in my gaze._

_He sighs and gently pushes my bangs out of my face. I refuse to let myself blush at the gesture. This was no time for me to be blushing!_

_"I didn't tell you something that I observed," my eyebrows tilt down slightly as I look at the blue-haired teenager, "There's something wrong with your bracelet."_

_I blink, a confused look displayed on my face. My ____bracelet__? I hold up my wrist with the golden chain and run my finger along it as I move into a sitting position on the bed, "This?" I look at him uncertainly._

_He nods, "You told me you got it the day you went to the festival, the same day you met me. It was also the same day your luck started to take a turn for the worst."_

_I stare at the chain. What is he talking about? This is just unreasonable and ridiculous. T__here's no way a ____bracelet__, of all things, would cause all this to happen, "Definitely not, don't be stupid."_

_"Well, with your IQ, I doubt you'll understand," he sighs with an 'oh-well' face, which soon turns into a smirk. I glare at him as he continues, "Remember when the bracelet cut me?" I hesitate, then nod, "There's something.. something ____off__ about it," he looks at the bracelet with disgust._

_"I doubt it," I mutter, then another completely different thought crosses my mind, "HOW THE HELL DID YOU GET IN MY ROOM!?"_

_"I can proudly say that this time, I didn't come in from the window," he grins and I gasp._

_"YOU'VE SNUCK IN HERE BEFORE!?" Ikuto laughs and I boil with anger, wanting to rip out his midnight blue locks, "____PERVERT__!"_

_He tumbles onto the bed in amusement, laughing while I spit out random insults, "Oh Amu," he says between laughter, "I love you!"_

_I stop yelling and stare at the still-laughing teenager on my bed, my face turning a dark red color. _

___No, no, Amu. Don't start thinking things like that. He's only saying that in the moment because he thinks it's funny when you get all worked up.__ I tell myself and I force the blush away from my cheeks. _

_"Humph!" I turn and cross my arms, almost forgetting what made me all angry in the first place. Ah, that's right, how the hell he got in! "Ikuto, I'll ask you again," I glance at Ikuto, who has finally stopped laughing and was now wiping the tears from his eyes, "How the hell did you get into my goddamn room!? No wait- How the hell did you get into my goddamn ____house__!?"_

_Ikuto puts a finger to his lips, "Quiet down with all the cursing, or your grandpa is going to hear you," he winks._

_Oh yeah, my grandpa. Almost forgot about him. I wonder why... Oh, that's right! He never comes out of his room._

_My grandpa on my father's side agreed to coming and living in my house after my mom died so Ami and I didn't have to go to an orphanage or something. He also pays the bills for the house which, mind you I'm grateful for, but he could deal with Ami and I a bit better. He only ever comes out of __his room to go to the bathroom(which is often). He's so lazy; all he does is sleep all day. I end up taking care of him instead of him taking care of me. I bring him meals everyday and make sure he has everything he needs. Yeah sure he's really old, but he not that old that he can't walk around the house and do things for himself!_

_I sigh and lower my voice, "Will you please answer the question?" I ask through gritted teeth._

_"Ah, how inevitable..," he grins, "I went through the front door, of course."_

_I stare at him, a blank expression on my face. After many moments of silence, I sigh, "Should have known," I mumble._

_"Shall I keep your grandpa company?" he suggests out of the blue and I shake my head._

_"Company is the ____last__ thing he wants. Right now, he's probably taking his afternoon nap. Or- his day nap.. Or- Ah what the hell, he's just never awake."_

_Ikuto chuckles and mutters, "Cute," causing me to blush. Why the hell was he acting like this today? Shouldn't he be feeling sorry for me or something?_

_Ikuto stands and I look at him, "I better get going," he turns._

_"Wait!" I call before I realize what I'm doing. W-Why did I just tell him to wait!?_

_He looks over his shoulder at me, "Yes?"_

_I avert my eyes, "Ah, it's nothing. Get out." _

_He smiles and leaves the room, calling back, "Gladly!" with a sarcastic tone._

_I pull the blankets up to my face, covering up my blushing cheeks._

_**xxx**_

_"How is it that I'm able to act normally around you, despite what's happened?" I glance over at Ikuto who is walking a couple steps behind me as Ami pulls me forward, eager to get to the flower shop. We are visiting the graveyard today, and Ami is really serious about it. I suppose this affected her much more than I imagined it would for a girl her age._

_"Because I'm amazing and you're in love with me," he states simply while grinning._

_I blush and instantly turn my head to look forward, "Perverted cow. ____You wish__!"_

_He chuckles, "Now in what way do I resemble a cow, exactly?"_

_"Shut up," I growl playfully as we finally reach the flower shop._

_"Onee-chan, these ones are pretty," Ami points to small red and white flowers._

_I look at the flowers and I can't help but agree, "Yeah, and I think Mama and Papa will like them too. Do you want to get these ones?" I ask my younger sister._

_Ami nods, "Can I look at all the flowers first?"_

_"Okay, don't take too long," she lets go of my hand and wanders off. I turn to Ikuto and see that his eyes is fixed on me. My skin squirms under his gaze, "What?"_

_He smiles, "Nothing."_

_I dismiss it and walk over to him, "Can I ask for advise on something?"_

_"Eh, I'm not so good with advise, but can I interest you in a sarcastic __comment?"_

_I smile, "No!"_

_"Okay, so what do you want advise on?"_

_"Well," I avert my eyes and bite my lip, "I don't know how to treat Ami. She's much more fragile than I imagined her to be in this situation. I mean, you have a sister, right?"_

_"How did you know that?" he lifts an eyebrow, a smirk played across his face._

_"You told me over the phone, dumbass." _

_He chuckles, "Ah, that's right. Well I don't see why you would need advise on that. You're doing just fine on your own."_

_I shrug and turn away from him, unsure. I walk over to some purple flowers and smile. I absolutely adore flowers. After a couple minutes of looking at the flowers, I hear Ikuto's velvety voice from behind me again, "Mademoiselle." _

_I turn around and gasp in surprise, seeing Ikuto bow in front of me. When he straightens his back again, I notice the smirk on his face and the pretty pink flower in his hand, "For you," he hands me the flower and my face turns about the same shade of pink as it. Suddenly, he starts laughing, "I knew it would match!" he smiles._

_I stare at him, annoyed, "Baka!" I turn around but he grabs my hand and places the flower in it. I blush lightly, but I'm turned so he cant see me. He lets go of me and I start wandering the store in search for Ami as I look admiringly at the flower Ikuto gave me._

_**xxx**_

_I stare down at the grave. On it, the names "Hinamori Tsumugu & Midori" are carved. My dad used to have his own grave, but when my mother died, my grandpa decided that they should be buried together._

_I try to keep my voice from shaking as I halfheartedly smile at my little sister, "W-Why don't you give them the flowers, A-Ami?" I say, my voice cracking as tears come to my eyes. Ami just nods and sets the red and white bouquet on the stone._

_"These are for you, Mommy, Daddy," Ami mutters, "I lowve you and wish you could come back," she slurs and turns around. She walks over to where Ikuto is standing a couple of steps behind me and tugs on his sleeve. He looks down only to see the tears flowing from her eyes. He frowns apologetically and grabs her hand. I smile slightly at this, then turn to the grave._

_"Dad, I miss you more than anything. You always brought light and humor into the house, and you always made me smile no matter how upset I was. If only you were still around...," I pause and beg my tears not to fall, "I-I'm taking care of Ami, and I will be sure nothing happens to her," I stare at the ground and continue, "M-Mama, you shouldn't have left me.. I m-miss your bright smile, and your forgiving eyes.. I-If only you didn't l-leave. Then we could be h-happy again!" the tears start flowing from my eyes, "I swore I'd never leave you, but n-now you go and leave me.. Why? W-Why..." I stop, unable to keep going because the tears have made it impossible. My knees give and I stumble to the ground, digging my face in my hands. I finally get one last sentence out between gasps, "I-It's all my fault you're d-dead!" I scream and I feel Ikuto's warm arms wrap around me._

_"It's gonna be okay, don't worry," he mutters softly into my ear, "Nothing is your fault, don't blame yourself. Everything is alright," I turn and collapse into Ikuto's embrace. This is what I need.. I need Ikuto. He's always been there for me, and he always will._

_Without thinking, I blurt out, "I love you, Ikuto." _

_Then my eyes fly open in realization._

_**~Chapter End~**_

_**Ohh, long chappy! :3**_

_**I hope this one satisfies you all! Well I hope to update asap, but schools just starting and there giving out a lot of homework. But don't worry, I wont forget about you guys!**_

_**Okay, I just want to say that right now I am feeling amazed, grateful, happy, excited, lucky, and surprised! Well, I feel this way because of how popular this story is! You guys make me feel amazing, and that's something I could never repay you for. I hope these chapters are enough for now :)**_

_**So tell me what you think! It's much appreciated :D**_

_**Arigato gozaimasu!**_

_**~AmuletFortune98**_


	8. Supernatural

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful! You guys are amazing xD

Thanks for keeping me motivated, everyone!

Btw, I have no idea why in Chapter 7 it was mostly in italics... Fanfiction must have messed up, cause I didn't do that...

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

No.. No, no, no, no, no!

I pull away from Ikuto in an instant and stare up in horror at him. What the hell did I just say? Where is this coming from?

My face turns red and I avert my eyes as soon as I see his shocked face. Why did I just say that I love him? I don't! I do _not_ love Tsukiyomi Ikuto!

O-Or do I...?

_NO!_

"Eh.. Um, I-I didn't mean that I-" I stare at the ground and quickly wipe my tears away, "I-I mean..., um.. Well, y-you've always b-been there for me... But, um.. I d-don't love you!" I say rather quickly, trying to cover up my blushing face.

"Right..," Ikuto mutters and looks away.

"I-It's just that I.. Um...," I dash over to my little sister and take her hand, "We better g-go! Come on, A-Ami..," I turn and drag Ami down the path of the graveyard, not daring to look at Ikuto.

"But Onee-chan..," Ami whines. She clearly wants to be with our parents for a bit longer. Damn, I'm sorry Ami! I just couldn't stay there any longer..

God, that was so embarrassing!

I hold my forehead with my hand as we walk on. I really want to get home so I can take a shower and go to bed. Or maybe I should read manga, or watch TV, just to get my mind off of...

"Onee-chan," Ami looks up at me, "You lowve Ikuto-san?"

I blush like a lunatic and look the other way, "N-No! Of course not! I-I didn't mean to say that, I wasn't thinking! I just... Well I guess I got caught up in the moment, you know? L-Like he was there, and he was being really nice, and with Mom and Dad gone I just need someone-" I stop mid-sentence. What the hell am I saying? This isn't helping me at all! "I don't know why I said it. There."

I don't hear a reply, so I glance over at my little sister to find that she's smiling. Like, _really_ smiling. Like something _really_ good happened. I stare, confused and worried(and a little frightened) at Ami, "Eh, w-what are you smiling at?"

Her smile turns into a grin, and my eyes widen. What could she be thinking of?

I start doubting myself: What if she notices something? Wait, wouldn't there be nothing to notice? Maybe there is... No! But what if she thinks I'm lying? I'm not, but what if she assumes I am? Could it look like I'm lying? I don't know, I'm so confused right now! My feelings are all jumbled up, and I can't tell whats love or what's like..

"Onee-chan likes Ikuto-san!"

I let go of her hand and bury my face in my hands, "I know!" I moan loudly. Ami just giggles and I crumble to the ground. It can't be! Why did I say that? Maybe...

"Onee-chan likes Ikuto-san!" she repeats, "Onee-chan would be good with Ikuto-san!"

"Ami.. Please stop..." I groan and cover my face in my jacket. Why did I have to come out and tell _my little sister_ of all people! I should have told Rima first! No, I should have told _me_ first! Why is my mouth running without me controlling it? Why am I expressing these feelings when I am not even sure about them? I don't know...

"Ne, by the way, we're home!" Ami giggles and runs to the front door.

I let out another groan and finally rise from my uncomfortable position on the ground. I walk to the door reluctantly and unlock it.

**xxx**

I step out of the shower and start drying myself off. I grab another towel and weave it through my pink locks then look into the mirror. Staring into my golden orbs, I sigh. Now I'll be too embarrassed to talk to Ikuto ever again..

"Aggghhhh!" I exclaim out loud. I want all my frustration to be heard! I grab the sides of my head with my hands and take a deep breath.

_Calm down, Amu._ I nod when something golden catches my eye. Looking at my wrist in the mirror, I stare at the golden chain. It couldn't possibly... Could it?

I bring my left wrist to my right hand and fumble with the bracelet. Maybe I should take it off? But it's really pretty...

I turn the bracelet to find the part that latches together, but I can't find it, "What the hell?" I twist the chain around but can't spot the opening, "Where is it?" Realizing there isn't one, I try to pull it past my hand, but it doesn't fit. How the hell did I get this thing on if I can't get it off?

Giving up with a sigh, I get dressed and return to my bedroom.

After a couple hours of cursing myself for what I said today in bed, I finally drift into sleep. It's a light sleep, but at least it's sleep. However, I'm roused from my unmemorable dreams when I hear a door creak open. My eyes fly open and I whip my head around to face the door. I gasp in horror as I see the door wide open, revealing a dark hallway.

"A-Ami?" I whisper, then look around the room to see if she was hiding somewhere, "D-Don't scare me.."

Suddenly the door slams shut and I jump, letting out a squeak of terror, "A-Ami!?" I look around the room frantically, but I already know my little sister isn't here. I do know, however, that _someone_ is here.

I tug the blanket up to the brim of my nose and shiver, "W-Who's there?"

Silence.

I shiver yet again, but this time because a cool breeze brushes by my skin. I stare at the closed window and take a deep breath. There's no possible way something supernatural...

"AHHHH!" I scream at the thought. I'm terrified of ghosts! "L-L-L-LEAVE ME ALONE!"

I hear footsteps outside my door and my breath catches in my throat. The door handle turns, then the creak sounds...

"G-Get away f-from me!" I yowl at the shadow standing outside my door. I cover my head with my blankets and beg for it to leave.

Something nudges me and I yelp. Then a soft voice filled with sleep comes from the other side of my blanket, "Onee-chan, what are you yelling about?"

"Ami!?" I peek my head out from the blanket and gasp as I see my little sister holding my blanket, looking at me with sleep in her eyes. She's holding her small teddy bear tightly to her chest, "Ami! Eh.. Sorry to wake you-"

"Onee-chan had a nightmawre?" she cuts me off.

"Well," I avert my eyes and try to slow down my racing heartbeat, "N-Not exactly."

"Saw a ghowst?"

I stare at her, surprised she even guessed that, "Um..," I look down and take a deep breath, "I-I guess so.."

"Can I sleep with Onee-chan?" she looks up at me and I look, shocked, at my little sister, "Mommy, Daddy and I always slept together when I had nightmawres..," she stares at the floor and I frown, instantly forgetting about my fears and feeling sorry for Ami instead.

I grab her hand and smile at her, "Of course," she nods and smiles slightly as I help her climb up onto my bed. She snuggles up close to me and closes her eyes, instantly falling asleep. I sigh, "I love you, Ami. Sleep well..," I eventually close my eyes and drift off.

Once I open my eyes again, it's already morning. I look over to my window and first notice how white everything is. _Snow!_ I stand up and walk toward the window, admiring the white beauty, "Ami, wake up, it snowed last night!"

Hearing no reply, I turn around to rouse her only to find no one in my bed, "Ami?" I look around the room but she isn't here. Where the hell is she!? "Ami!" I rush out of my room and down the hall to my little sister's room. I knock on the door, but no one answers. Swinging open the door, I gasp at the empty room, "AMI!"

I search the house, but she is no where to be found. I run up to my grandpa's room, only to find him sleeping in his bed like always.

No.. No no no! It can't be.. Not her too! Not my little sister!

Tears roll down my cheeks and I run to my room, grabbing my phone and calling the one person that will understand. Ikuto.

"Amu?" he answers on the first ring, sounding a little anxious and worried.

I open my mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. Instead, I start crying uncontrollably. I manage to cough out, "Ami!" and then I hear him hang up. I crumble onto my bed and bawl into the pillow. Why her!? She was the only one I had left!

After a couple minutes of crying into my pillow, the door flies open and I feel arms wrap around me, "I-Ikuto..," I mumble and he buries his face in my hair.

"What happened...," he hesitates, then continues, "...to your sister?"

As more tears flow, I mutter, "C-Can't find her."

I don't think he knows what to say, because he stays silent and holds me closer to him. I don't even care about what I said to Ikuto yesterday. All I care about is my little sister.

Having deja vu, I finally stop crying. Ikuto holds me for a couple more moments, then finally lets go, however I do admit that I wish he held me longer.. I like the comfort his embrace offers...

Once my voice returns, I ask, "H-How'd you get here so fast?"

He smiles slightly, "My motorcycle."

"B-But it snowed! Isn't that dangerous?" I look at him, worried.

"I had to get to you."

"But..," I look down, then Ikuto stands up from by bed and takes my hands.

"Come on," he tugs on my hands and helps me off the bed, "Have you eaten yet today?" I shake my head, and he sighs, "Okay, let's make some food. You'll feel better then."

No I won't... I won't feel better until I know that Ami is safe.. That she hasn't been taken from me like my parents have.

Ikuto guides me down the stairs and into my kitchen. He motions for me to sit at the table and I do. Once I'm seated, he opens the refrigerator and takes some eggs out. I smile at the thought of Ikuto making me breakfast, but it instantly goes away as I remember my sadness.

I hear the sound of the front door open and I stand. I know I locked the door last night! I rush to the door and gasp as I see my little sister covered in snow standing inside, grinning widely.

"Ami!" I run toward her and hug her tightly, not even caring as the freezing snow seeps through my pjs, "Thank God!" Tears start to flow again, but for once, these aren't tears of sadness.

"Onee-chan?" Ami sounds confused, but I hold her tightly anyway, wanting to protect her from anything bad.

"Where were you?" I finally ask and pull away, looking into her eyes strictly.

"I-It snowed, so I wanted to play outside! I went to the backyawrd and rolled around!"

I mentally slap myself. _Hard._ How could I not think of checking the backyard? I'm such an idiot! "I'm so glad you're okay..," I mutter as I bring her in for another hug.

Ikuto finally appears and looks at Ami, shocked and confused. "She was in the backyard..," I mutter, getting embarrassed about crying earlier and calling him over for nothing. He's gonna think I'm stupid for not checking the backyard!

Ikuto smiles and walks over to us. Kneeling down, he pats Ami's head. I notice a hint of relief in his gaze, and I realize that he would have been sad if Ami was really gone, too.

"By the way," he turns to me, "You're breakfast is ready."

**~Chapter End~**

**WRITER'S BLOCK, I HATE YOU!**

**Well, now that I've gotten that out of my system, I wanna say thanks to everyone for reviewing! I'm so happy this story is getting more popular!**

**I'll try to update faster for the next chapter. I realize that I haven't been updating as fast as I should, but that's only because of stupid damn homework. Sorry, everyone. I really hope the next chapter can be out by this Saturday or Sunday! Don't be mad if it isn't though! Dx**

**I really appreciate all of you guys' support. It's really motivational!**

**And I've got a quick, random question to ask all of you:**

**So I like music theater, and I really like choreography. So, I was thinking about taking a theater choreography class! The class is on Mondays from 5:45 to 7pm, and I don't know how long it will be going on for. What do you guys think? Think I should take it? I'm only worried about taking it because of updating, homework, and everything else that goes on in my life :/ I mean, once you join the class you have to make a commitment...**

**Okay, sorry for getting off topic there! Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed chapter 8! Chapter 9 will be coming out ASAP!**

**Arigato gozaimazu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	9. It's Time to be Punished

Oh no! I updated slowly... Sorry everyone!

Anyway, I leave the chatting for after the chapter is finished :) Without further ado, here is chapter 9!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

"Amu!" Rima's excited squeak came from right in front of me. I smile at her and she opens the door to her house wider, "And Ikuto," she nods to him, "I'm glad you two could make it! Come on in."

I glance at Ikuto then walk inside my friend's house, Ikuto following closely behind.

Rima's parents are hosting a party for her father's business, and Rima told me that they said she could bring me. I guess it's a good thing, because it just goes to show that her parents are getting along better now. I gladly told her I would come, but Ikuto insisted on accompanying me. I don't know why, but Ikuto has been acting pretty strangely lately. He's been stopping by very often, and he helps me around the house a lot. I can't say I don't like him coming over all the time, but I feel pretty guilty that he does. Right now Ami is at a friend's house, and that's why we could come.

Ikuto and I decided to wear nice, semi-formal clothes to the party. I've met Rima's parents before, and I know how formal they like being, so I want to impress them, I guess you could say.

"Mom and Dad are in there talking mingling with the employees," Rima motions to the living room as we pass by, "But it would be kind of boring if we went in there as well so...," she stops walking and turns to us, "What do you want to do?"

I blink and look around, "Um...," I thought coming to Rima's would be fun, but it's a little awkward for Ikuto to be here as well. I glance at him, but he's busy staring at something else. I look over to see what he's staring at, and I see a small, white kitten stalking through the halls.

"Is that your kitten?" he asks Rima, not taking his eyes off the little creature.

"Um, yes.. His name is Taishi," Rima replies.

"Ah..," he stares and I can't help a giggle escaping my lips. His head whips around and he looks at me, confused, "What?"

"Oh nothing," I grin, "I just didn't know you were a cat lover. No wonder you hated that dog so much when we took that walk!" I giggle a bit more and Ikuto rolls his eyes.

My giggles subside when Rima starts giggling as well. We both look at her, wondering what she could be laughing at, "Well look at this.. I wondered why you wanted to bring Ikuto, but now I know. You two are so cute!"

My face turns bright pink as I quickly look away, "N-No! Rima y-you've got it all w-wrong.. I-Ikuto and I a-aren't-"

I'm cut off when Ikuto wraps his arm around my waist, "You caught us," he smiles, causing me to blush a deep shade of red.

"I-Ikuto!" I squeak. Why was he teasing me like this? And after I said that I loved him... No! That was an accident; I didn't mean to say it! Aw, who am I kidding? Ami even saw through that..

"I knew it," Rima grins and shrugs.

"No R-Rima, listen to me-"

"Well, I had a feeling there was something going on between you two already, so I invited some other friends of mine as well. That way, you two can have some alone time tonight if you'd like."

"Perfect, thanks," Ikuto replies and holds me tighter.

Anger wells up inside me and I wriggle from his grip, "YOU BASTERD!" I yell and push him away from me as hard as possible.

Rima gasps, but Ikuto smirks, "Come on, Amu. I was only joking."

I glare at him and ball up my fists, "Well stop joking! It's not funny!" I _can't_ tell him that I actually have feelings for him. I just _can't_.

"Mashiro found it funny," he shrugs and I stare at the ground, willing him to stop teasing me.

"Oh, um.. Gomen.. I'm a bit confused," I hear Rima's tiny voice from beside me and I look up at her.

"It was a joke. Nothing is going on between Amu and I," he turns and walks down the hall.

I blink after him, confused, then turn to Rima who's looking a little upset, "Gomennasai, Amu, I just thought because-"

"D-Don't worry about it, let's drop it." I turn around to look where Ikuto disappeared to, "Where do you think he went?"

"Probably to see my kitten. He seemed pretty fond of him.." The doorbell rings and Rima spins on her heels quickly, "I-I better get that!" she runs off, leaving me standing awkwardly in the hall.

Well she seemed pretty excited to answer the door.. I wonder who she invited.

Feeling a little guilty about getting so angry at Ikuto, I turn to the direction he went and start walking, "Ikuto?" It was only a harmless joke, I should apologize.

Finding my way through the large house, I come to a large room. It's the only room that's open, so I walk in. Sure enough, blue hair catches my eye and I walk over to a crouched-down Ikuto who's petting a loudly-purring Taishi. I smile and crouch down next to him. He looks at me, then back at Taishi.

I sigh, "G-Gomen.. about... just now..," I mumble.

"You did nothing wrong. Probably shouldn't have teased you like that."

I stare at Ikuto wide-eyed. I didn't think he ever regretted making fun of me! I guess I was wrong..

"Let's forget about it okay?"

He hums in agreement and I smile slightly. I reach down to scratch Taishi's ears, but the moment I touch his soft fur, a hiss escapes his lips. I quickly pull back my hand before he swipes at it and sigh.

"I don't know what to do about it..," I mutter, and Ikuto glances at me.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you think I should give up? You know, on everything? Maybe if I did, all these bad things will stop happening. I don't want anyone else to get hurt.. Everyone is getting hurt because of me, I can just tell. I should give up..."

Suddenly, Ikuto turns to me and grabs my shoulders. He pushes me gently to the floor and levels himself on top of me, "Amu," he stares down at me, his eyes intense, "I don't want you to say that ever again. Never, _never_ think about giving up. You really think something will be accomplished by giving up? If you decided to leave, I don't know what...," he hesitates, "I don't know what I'd do."

I gasp and stare up at him. My cheeks turn a light shade of pink as I look into his eyes. I shiver as it seems like Ikuto is looking right through my eyes into my soul. The shiver turns into something warm and tingly, and I struggle to figure out just what this feeling is.

Before I find out, I realize Ikuto getting closer. My breath catches and my heart quickens. I manage to breathe out, "I-Ikuto..," as his lips are inches from mine. As I brace myself for contact, he suddenly pulls back and climbs off of me.

"Come on, Mashiro is probably looking for us," he turns and walks out of the room, leaving me with a crazy, unsettling, rejected feeling resting in my stomach.

**xxx**

"Amu, Ikuto, these are my friends Nagihiko," Rima motioned to a boy with long purple hair, "Kukai," she then motioned to the other guy, a boy with brown hair, "And Utau" she pointed to a tall, beautiful girl with blond hair that went to her waist, pulled up into two pigtails.

"Nice to meet you all," I smile and bow to them, "I feel like I've seen you three around. Maybe we go to the same school?" I remember the time when Rima ran off at lunch to hang out with some other people. I'm pretty sure these are the same people.

Kukai and Nagihiko nod in agreement, but when I look at Utau, she's too busy staring at something next to me: Ikuto. I look at Ikuto and see he's busy staring at Utau as well.

There's a long pause, then finally Ikuto speaks up, "Utau? What are _you _doing here?"

Rima blinks at Utau, confusion flooding her gaze, "Wait, you two know each other?"

Utau is too busy staring to reply, so Ikuto does instead, "She's my little sister."

Now, I had no idea that was coming, but it's not _too_ surprising. I mean, I guess good looks run in the family.

Wait, did I just say that Ikuto is good looking? Well, I can't lie; he totally is. Not that I like him! It's just.. I don't know, he's handsome.. Well, maybe I do-like-him.. I cough and look at the ground.

"Amu!" I'm ripped from my thoughts by Rima's voice, "You didn't tell me Ikuto had a sister."

I think back to the time Ikuto and I were talking on the phone, and I recall hearing a female voice in the background, and Ikuto said it was his sister, "I-I forgot.."

"Well, I know Utau is always bragging about her handsome brother, but now I can tell! Wow, I had no clue you two were related!" Rima smiles.

Utau finally breaks free from her trance and smiles ear-to-ear, "IKUTO!" she jumps at him and wraps her arms around him suddenly, causing them both to topple to the floor.

"U-Utau! Get off me!"

"I missed you so much! You've hardly ever been at home, and when you are, you're too busy with homework to spend any time with me!" Utau frowns then gives Ikuto another bear hug. The blue-haired boy tries desperately to push her off of him, but surprisingly, Utau is just as strong as him.

I tilt my head to the side, slightly confused. Did… Did Utau have a brother complex? I can't help the wave of jealousy wash over my body as I glance up at Rima, but Kukai catches my eye first. He's turning his head away from the commotion and looking the other way. It's almost as if he looks upset. Why would he be upset?

Ikuto finally manages to rip himself free from his sister and quickly raise to his feet, "Dammit, Utau!" he growls.

Utau pouts, "But Ikuto…"

"Shut up, and stop throwing yourself at me. I would _never_ be interested in my _sister_!" he rolls his eyes and Utau looks down in embarrassment.

"I-I'm sorry…," she stands and suddenly runs off. Kukai calls to her, then quickly runs after her

"Um, okay then. Sorry about that. They'll be okay though," Rima says to no one in particular.

"Kukai told me that he likes Utau," Nagihiko says suddenly.

"Nagi! You shouldn't say that out loud!" Rima says and Nagi shrugs.

I look back and forth from Rima to Nagi and grin slightly to myself. They must like each other. I mean, it's kind of obvious.

Hold on! This is my chance! Now it'll seem like I'm teasing Rima about Nagi, but I really just want to spend time with Ikuto alone! …Wow, I'm a sick being.

I look up at Ikuto, "Well, how about we give these two some privacy?" I say to him then grin at the pair.

Rima and Nagi both turn a light shade of pink, and Ikuto chuckles, "Sure. Have fun, you two."

I lead the way down the hall with Ikuto walking slowly behind me. Once we reach the end of the hall, I turn and glance at Ikuto, then blush lightly.

"So what are you planning? You want to tease Mashiro, right?" Ikuto looks at me, his hands loosely hanging out of his pockets.

I blush a bit more, then look at the ground, "Um, yeah.. That's it."

"Well now it's just me and my strawberry, alone. What do you want to do?"

I blush a darker shade of red and stare at my feet, "D-Don't call me your strawberry," I mutter, but the meaning behind my words is absent.

"Your tone disagrees with you."

I ball my hands into fists, suddenly getting really nervous. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to be alone with him. I don't get it! Why has it been fine for me to be around him other times, but suddenly now I get so nervous? "N-No it doesn't.."

There's a pause, then Ikuto mutters, "Why won't you look at me?" He places a hand under my chin and tilts my head upward, forcing me to look directly at him. My heartbeat starts to quicken as I look into his deep blue eyes, and my cheeks flush just a bit more.

As if to ruin the moment, a loud crash echoes from the room to my left. I jump in surprise and we both stare at the closed door. After a moment or so, Ikuto lets go of my chin and reaches for the door handle, however once he opens the door, nothing in the room seems to have fallen.

"W-What was that?" I breathe as I start to get goosebumps. Ikuto shakes his head as if to say he doesn't know then slowly enters the room. I quickly grab his arm and he turns to me, "Wait, don't leave me here."

Ikuto takes my hand and lead me into the room. He flips on the light switch, but no lights turn on. Instead, we stand in a dark room with the shades closed. I squeeze his hand tighter as he looks around the room.

"It was nothing," he says after a while, "You don't have to be scared-"

Another loud noise coming from inside the room interrupts him. I gasp and jump closer to Ikuto, burying my face in his chest. I am terrified of ghosts! My body is shaking from head to toe. Ikuto gently grabs the back of my head and holds it close to him.

After a couple moments of silence, a cool breeze makes the hair on my neck stand on-end, "I-Ikuto," I whisper, my voice wavering in fear.

"Amu..," he replies softly. Wait a minute, that didn't sound like his voice, that was..

"What was that?" Ikuto says. I look up at him, confused.

"Th-That wasn't you, w-was it? Y-You didn't say my name, d-did you?" I ask, and he shakes his head. My breath catches in my throat as the thought of spirits talking floods my mind.

"Amu..," the chilling voice starts again, and I yet again bury my face in Ikuto's warm chest, "it's time to be punished."

**~Chapter End~**

**I'm so sorry for the late update everyone, but I hope this extra-long chapter makes up for it! **

**Yep, I admit that this chapter is a little far fetched, but I just want to get the story line moving a little faster. This story's got a ways to go :) **

**Sorry again for this slow update; my computer is being a bitch and the 'O' key and the '.' key stopped working. Right now I'm typing on my family laptop, which I share with my family obviously. It might make updates slower, but I won't leave you guys hanging! Don't worry!**

**Thank you everyone, for your patience and kind reviews! They mean a lot to me xD**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**

.


	10. Karma

Wow, I'm very sorry about these once a week updates :( I know they're slow and I'm trying to fix that, but I also have a bunch of other stories I'm writing and everything, so I thank you all for being so patient!

This story is beginning to climax, however it's still a couple more chapters from finishing. I hope you all enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

"AHHHH!" I scream and bury myself in Ikuto's arms. He holds me protectively and whispers words of reassurance, however I don't really feel like being reassured right now. A voice just fucking told me it's time to be punished and Ikuto's saying everything's alright? I don't know about that.

Banging noises are heard around the room, clearly telling us that something is in the room with us.

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" I scream into Ikuto's shirt, tears coming to my eyes. Something strange has been going on recently, and it's different than all the bad luck. It feels as if a huge weight has been dropped on my shoulders, and it's almost as if I feel like something is always watching me, "I-Ikuto..," I whisper as another crash sounds from inside the room, "Get me out of here…"

Ikuto nods and picks me up gently bridal style, then dashes out the large room. As soon as we're farthest from the room, Ikuto sets me down. I press myself against Ikuto's warm body, wanting comfort, and in return he wraps his arms around me, holding me tightly.

What the hell was that!?

I don't really know where we ended up, but we're in some small room I've never seen before. The room is very quiet; almost _too_ quiet.

Suddenly, there's a knock on the door and I jump in fear, holding onto Ikuto tighter, but as soon as I hear Rima's voice, I quickly let go of him, blushing.

"Amu, Ikuto, what are you two doing in here?" she says with a sneaky look in her gaze.

I stare at the ground and blush harder, my hair still standing on end from the terrifying experience just moments ago. I'm about to answer when Ikuto does before me.

"Gomen, Mashiro, but Amu's not feeling well. I'm going to take her home, okay?" I look up at him, surprised, but quickly look as if I'm feeling sick.

"Oh really?" Rima asks, clearly not convinced, "Oh that's too bad. Feel better Amu."

I nod and Ikuto leads the way out. I follow behind him, but Rima grabs my wrist, pulling me back to her, "Amu, what happened? Were you two getting in the mood or something? Is that why you're going home now? Amu, you're way too young for sex!"

"Look who's talking!" I say somewhat loudly, a huge blush forming on my cheeks. My voice drops to a whisper again, "A-And th-that's not it! D-Don't jump to c-conclusions Rima!" I look around nervously, "I think I have a f-fever."

"Fine, see you later Amu. _Feel better_!" she smirks and I glare at her.

Rima, you really piss me off sometimes.

I turn on my heel and hurry to catch up to Ikuto.

As soon as we leave the house and walk a bit farther down the street I stare at Ikuto, "Why'd you say I was sick!?"

He blinks down at me, confused, "So we could get out of that place," he says as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"It doesn't matter where I am! That _thing_, whatever it is will follow me! I know it!" I snap, a litter harsher than I intended it to sound.

He bends down and places his hands on my shoulders, "Amu, listen to me. We can't hang out around them when this thing is following you. And don't worry," he stands up straight again and removes his hands, "I'll be sure to protect you. I won't let anything harm you."

I stare at him and tears start to come to my eyes. I force myself not to cry as we walk on to my house.

**xxx**

RING RING RING RING

I stand from my sitting position and walk over to the home phone. Ikuto and I had returned to my house about a half hour ago and he refused to leave me alone. We sat in each other's arms while banging was heard throughout my house. I just barely heard the phone ring over the noise.

Ikuto followed me into the kitchen, where I picked up the phone on the 5th ring.

"This is Hinamori Amu," I say quietly and as calmly as possible.

"Are you Hinamori Ami's sister?" a woman's voice from the other line asks frantically.

My breath catches in my throat, "Y-Yes…," I look down at the ground and the first tears start falling silently. I already know something must be wrong, "What happened to her?"

I know she's surprised I knew something is wrong because she pauses for a moment before answering, "Her and my daughter Masa were playing in the front yard when their ball rolled out into the street…," the woman sounded like she was crying too, "Ami chased it but..,"

"Is she okay!?" I ask quickly, more tears coming.

"She's okay right now," I don't think I've ever been more relieved in my life, "She's in the hospital right now, but she's unconscious and she's not doing well."

I slam the phone down in the receiver and start sobbing. Ikuto overheard the whole conversation, and he bends down to hug me again.

"WHY WON'T THIS COME OFF!?" I scream, tearing hopelessly at the golden chain between sobs.

I give up just as Ikuto starts to help. He struggles to find the latch to open the chain, and has trouble sliding it off my wrist. He doesn't succeed, and I'm left sobbing into Ikuto's shirt yet again.

**xxx**

After the accident, I visit Ami every day in the hospital. She's still in a coma, and the doctor says her condition is getting worse, but I still have the slightest sliver of hope. I'm clinging to that hope, praying that she will be okay.

Ikuto has been around me a lot more recently. He sometimes even insists to stay overnight at my house. I know he's just worrying about me because of what's going on, but I still feel bad he spends all his time with me.

Whatever is haunting me hasn't let up. I often find myself sleeping in the same bed as Ikuto because I'm so scared. I don't think my grandpa has noticed. Hell, I don't even know if he still lives here. He hasn't been out of his room in forever. He might even be dead. Who knows?

Whenever I visit the hospital, the noises subside and go away for a while. It makes me happy when I visit her without the noises because it feels like they aren't after Ami at all, whatever _they_ are.

After I found out about the accident, Ikuto and I came to the conclusion that the chain bracelet is behind this, somehow. It sounds stupid, but I actually think it is.

Since the festival where I got the bracelet is no longer in town, we decide to wait for the festival to return, which is New Year's. There, we'll ask the person who sold me the bracelet if they knew anything about it.

Christmas came and went, but I didn't celebrate. The only thing I did was visit Ami again and I got her a stuffed animal as a present. Later that night Ikuto gave me a gift, but it wasn't jewelry because we didn't want something like the golden chain thing happening again. Ikuto gave me some scented candles, which I love, and I lit them as we sat in front of the area in the living room where the Christmas tree should have been. I cried a bit that night, but Ikuto was there for me.

New Year's finally came, and as soon as it did, Ikuto and I rushed off to the festival. It took me a while to maneuver my way around the place, and it took even longer for me to figure out just where I bought the bracelet from.

The familiar stand finally catches my eye and we both rush over to speak with the man running the stand where I bought my bracelet. I'm relieved to see that it's the same man that sold me the bracelet before.

"Excuse me," I say and the man looks at me. His eyes go wide when he sees me and he gasps. I stare at him, confused, then continue, "You see, you sold me this bracelet at the last festival," I hold up my wrist with the chain on it and the man gasps again.

Ikuto stares at the man, "Do you know something about this bracelet?"

"I-I thought you'd be dead by now…," he whispers barely audibly and I gasp.

"W-What!?"

"What's wrong with you?" Ikuto glares at the man, "What do you mean by that?" he holds his arm up as if he's about to punch the man, so I quickly stop him.

"I-Ikuto, wait!" I turn to the man, "What do you know about this?"

"You won't believe me if I tell you," he says then turns away.

"I'm sure I will!" I say then step closer, "Please tell me."

"You really wanna know?" I nod and he sighs, "You won't like it."

"Just please tell us," Ikuto says, calming down a bit.

"Fine. I'm told by spirits to sell certain things to certain people. Once I received that golden chain from a spirit, it told me to give it to a pink-haired girl, and that it was her time to be punished."

"Wh-what do you mean? S-Spirits told you to give this to me? Th-they said it was time for me to be punished…?" I mutter, not understanding the situation.

"Yeah, it's hard to believe but it's true. You see, the spirits tell me to sell these things to people, then when the person buys it, they start having bad luck. The point of this is to get the person the object was sold to to die or kill themselves. After the pain of the misfortune is too much for one person to bear, they usually kill themselves."

"B-But why me? Why anyone?" I whisper, my voice unable to make a sound.

"I guess you could call it Karma. You must have done something very, very bad when you were younger and you don't remember it to deserve this bracelet."

Something very bad? What could that have been? I don't remember everything from when I was little!

"What sort of bad things would she have done to deserve this?" Ikuto asks.

"The spirit who gives me the object is usually the spirit of someone the victim killed."

Ikuto and I gasp, and I stare at the ground, tears coming to my eyes, "I-I couldn't have… N-Never.."

"Thanks for telling us," Ikuto mumbles and grabs my hand, leading me away from that place.

A ghost is trying to get me to kill myself!

**~Chapter End~**

**Yes, it's getting pretty supernatural now! It might be a bit far-fetched, but it's necessary for the storyline. :)**

**YAYYYY! EVERYONE'S REVIEWS MAKE ME SO HAPPY!**

**I wanna thank all of you who love this story and all my other stories! It makes me happy to see someone enjoy this story, then go and read all my other stories as well. It really makes my day and I'm glad you guys like my writing! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I hope I didn't update too late for you guys. :\**

**Anyway, reviews are much appreciated, and if you have just started reading this story, thanks for reading up till here! More chapters to come!**

**Arigato gozaimasu! **

**~AmuletFortune98**


	11. Please Forgive Me

Oh nooo I updated late again Dx Sorry for the weekly updates. I wish I could do them sooner, but life just got really busy it seems!

Anyways, here's chapter 11! It isn't much, but please do enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

My head is spinning for two reasons; I'm being haunted by a ghost and because I'm trying my best to figure out what I could have done to deserve this. No, who I could have _murdered_. That guy who sold me the bracelet said usually he's told to sell those things to people who have murdered someone. But me, murder someone? I would never, _ever_ think about doing that in my life!

My head hurts from all the effort. I don't want to do this anymore. I don't want to suffer over something I can't remember, possibly something I didn't even do!

I hear a crash and I shut my eyes. Go away.. go away… Please, just leave me alone. I didn't do anything, I swear!

Suddenly, an image pops into my head:

I'm around 5 years old, and I'm wearing a cute white dress because my mom is hosting a party. I remember my grandparents coming over, but I don't remember seeing my grandpa anywhere. After a while of strolling around the mingling people bored, I walk into the living room to find my grandpa lying on the couch sleeping. He's got his cap over his eyes and his mouth is partially open, allowing a few snores to escape every once and a while. I look over to the table next to the couch and see 7 small attached boxes on it. The first box has a "S" on it, the next a "M" then a "T," "W," "TH," "F," and finally a "SA" on the last one. I look at the boxes, confused, then walk over to them.

I gasp at the sudden memory, but I don't allow Ikuto(who is sitting on the couch across from me) to notice. I stare at my lap and recall the image I just saw. Yeah, that was probably a memory, but why'd I just remember it? And what happened after that? Were those boxes pill boxes for each day of the week? I can't remember what day of the week that party when I was 5 was, but I somehow feel like that memory is important.

Another loud crash brings me back to reality. I begin to remember the situation that I'm in and my heart instantly sinks. I'm being haunted by something paranormal.

Why does this ghost want me dead so bad? And why can't I have my family back? Why can't Ami get better and why do I have to have so much bad luck?

…More importantly, why hasn't the ghost taken Ikuto away?

So far, everyone closest to me has died or gotten seriously injured except Ikuto. Maybe it only takes away family members? That's an odd rule for death. Why would a ghost stop after the family when it's trying to get me to kill myself?

I absolutely _do not_ want Ikuto to get hurt. _Ever_. Maybe this ghost is waiting for the right time to get him. If that happens, the ghost will definitely get it's wish to have me dead. Even if I die, I don't want Ikuto to die too! It's not fair! I have already admitted to myself that I have a crush on Ikuto. I can't lie, especially to myself, and I don't want Ikuto to die because of me! Not ever! If someone were to die, it should be me and not him.

"Ikuto..," I mumble as I look up from my spot on the couch to the blue-haired teenager, who is sitting on the other couch facing me.

After another loud noise is heard, Ikuto answers, "What?"

"Maybe….Maybe I should die before it's too late."

Ikuto stands and stares at me, an intense look in his eyes, "No."

"What?"

"No. Absolutely not."

"But Ikuto, it would be saf-"

"I said _no_!" he says and I stare at him, a look of shock played across my face. Ikuto looks at me for a little bit longer, then sits back down as if nothing had happened.

I look across the room at Ikuto, then feel a pain in my chest along with guilt running through my veins. Everything that has happened and everything that _will_ happen is all going to be my fault! Everything is my fault, and all because I bought some bracelet at a festival. No, all because I _murdered _somebody. I feel innocent, but with my luck, I'm probably guilty of murder, even if I can't remember it.

I take a deep breath and stand up. Ikuto looks at me and I mumble, "Bathroom," before heading out of the room and down the hall. A loud noise from inside the hall makes me jump, but I quickly continue walking until I reach the bathroom. I walk in and lock the door behind me, turning on the lights.

Ikuto, please try to understand. I'm doing this for you. I want you to be safe. I have to do this before you get hurt because of me.

I stare into the mirror and open the cabinet. I grab the first jar I see and stare at the label. They're the same kind of pills my mother swallowed and died because of… I examine the orange bottle and my head starts pounding. I can't do it. I just can't.

But I have to.

I close my eyes and take another deep breath. Stay strong and kill yourself. That's all I'm trying to think of right now.

I open the lid with a bit of difficulty due to the hard-to-open sealing, then stare into the bottle at the white capsules. I pour them out into my hand and just look at them. I count 24 in all and shut my eyes tight before pouring 3 in my mouth first, then another as tears roll down my cheeks slowly…

I don't want to do this, but I have to. I'm sorry mom, dad, Ami, Ikuto… Please forgive the huge mistake I made, whatever it was. Please forgive _me_.

**~Chapter End~**

**DO NOT WORRY EVERYONE, IT ISN'T OVER YET! More chapter(s) to come(I can't decide whether there should be just one more or multiple, but it will most likely be multiple).**

**I'm sorry this chapter's so short! Ahh, everything's tough when you're busy. I still haven't done my homework for tomorrow… I probably should get on that..**

**Anyways, it's getting pretty intense now! I just feel so bad for Amu. I would have written more for this chapter, but I felt like this was a good place to stop at. You know, to keep the suspense going and all. xD**

**I'm so happy that everyone is enjoying this story and leaving such wonderful and kind reviews! You guys make my day. No- my life. Thank you all so much! I would absolutely love it if you left a review for this chapter. I know it's short, but please tell me what you think(as if you guys don't already! You are all truly amazing and I love you).**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	12. Fear

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!  
**

I hear the sound of the door flinging open just as my eyes start to close. I only ended up swallowing 5 pills, and I'm already getting dizzy? Hmm…

"Amu!" Ikuto rushes over to me and I drop the bottle of pills on the ground, gasping for breath. 'Stay awake!' I keep telling myself, but my body soon makes its way to the floor. No, no, no! I'm so stupid! Killing myself is not the answer!

Is it?

"Amu, please..," Ikuto kneels down and pulls me into a hug, "Don't…"

"I-I'm sorry," I manage to say as I feel the warmth from his embrace just before I drift off.

**xxx**

"She's alright," is the first thing I hear as I rouse from my deep slumber. I open my eyes just a bit and see Ikuto standing with a doctor.

"That's great to hear," he says and smiles. What a lovely smile. To think, if I had died, I wouldn't be able to see that smile anymore. No, I doubt anyone would be able to see that smile anymore if I died… I know I mean something to Ikuto, whether that's friendship or something more I don't know, but I do know that if I died, he would be very sad.

The doctor nods to the blue-haired teenager then leaves the room. As soon as the door closes behind him, I open my eyes a bit wider, "Ikuto," I mumble and he turns to look at me. His eyes are soft and caring, but they quickly turn into a glare.

"What were you thinking!?"

"I'm sorry-" I mumble but he cuts me off.

"I've told you not to even think about doing that, and you go and attempt to do it?" he lets out a huff and sits down in the chair next to my hospital bed. He covers his face with his hands for a moment and sighs, then reveals his face again to me. It's turned back to caring and soft, but there's still a hint of anger in his gaze, "Just, don't do it again."

"I won't…"

Ikuto stands up and looks at me, his gaze grown gentler each second. He reaches a hand down to my face and caresses it softly. Heat rises to my cheeks, and my heartbeat quickens, but he soon pulls away, "I'm sorry, but I have to go home for a little while. My parents are fine with me staying away from home, but my sister really wants to see me again," he rolls his eyes and I nod, feeling guilty yet again for making him stay with me. Well, he did offer to stay… No, it was more like insisting he stayed.

"Okay," I say quietly and look up at him.

Ikuto sighs, "If you hear the noises again, call me. See you in a while." He turns and walks out of the room slowly.

"Bye…" I blink after the door closes behind him, my skin getting cold with fear. What if the ghost comes here at the hospital? Ikuto left.. Who else is there to protect me? The ghost will probably not make noises with other people around, but right now I'm all alone! I should have asked Ikuto to stay… He would have stayed if I asked…

No, he deserves to see his family after staying at my place for so long. It isn't fair that they have barely seen him lately. I wish Rima were here… Wait, where is Rima? Don't tell me she hasn't heard about this…

Well, Ikuto is very considerate. I doubt he wanted anyone else to worry so he didn't tell anyone. Maybe he even thought that telling people I attempted suicide would affect my image as an individual? I don't know… Sometimes Ikuto's actions are unpredictable. No, correction; Ikuto's actions are always unpredictable.

I sit up in the bed and stare at the door handle to the hospital, silently wishing someone would turn it. I haven't been alone in so long, and I don't like it.

Suddenly, the window that was letting in a small, cooling breeze of winter air slams shut. I gasp and look over to the window. Nothing but something paranormal could have done that.

I make a scared noise in the back of my throat and cover my face with the blankets. Ikuto said to call him if I heard anything, but he just left! I don't want to pull him away from his family any more than I already do. I have to respect that he has a life, unlike me.

My mind suddenly flashes back to that party when I was 5:

I walk over to the table and run my fingers along the boxes. Noticing that they can open, I pop open them all. The one with the 'S' is empty, and so is the one with the 'M' on it. I look into the box that has a 'T' on it and furrow my eyebrows when I see three small white spheres rolling around. I pick them up and examine them. Not knowing what they are, I decide to rearrange things and put the spheres some other place. I look around and when I see Grandpa's open mouth, I giggle and slip the three in his mouth. I look into the other boxes, finding more varieties of small things, all different shapes. It just seems so fun to slip the spheres through the small crack of his mouth, so I do the same thing with all the other small objects. After everything is successfully in his mouth, I giggle, not having a clue. A moment later, Grandpa swallows and coughs a bit, then returns to his slumber. Finding that just looking at him is boring, I wander out of the room.

Hours later, the party comes to a close, and Grandma decides it is time to get back to her house. She goes into the living room to wake Grandpa, but soon comes back screaming something I don't understand. Wanting to see what the commotion is about, I run into the living room along with my mom and dad. Grandma starts crying for some reason, then Mom and Dad do too. I don't know what is going on, and Mom keeps asking me, "Did you do anything, Amu?" I don't understand her question, but I explain what I did when I got bored anyway. She gasps and tells me to leave the room. I don't want to leave, but she yells at me to leave, so I run upstairs to my room.

The next day, I find out that my Grandpa is dead.

I gasp at the memory and cover my whole body with the blanket. So that's what it is…

"That's not fair!" I find myself yelling out loud, "I was only 5, I didn't know any better!"

"Hinamori-san?" I uncover my face with my blanket to see that the doctor has returned to the room.

I blush in embarrassment, "S-Sorry, I had a nightmare," I lie and cover my face again, my chest hurting as I think of me murdering my own grandpa.

"I'm very sorry to hear that. It seems common that people who attempt suicide have nightmares the day after. Well, it's good to see you're up."

I nod and sigh.

"It was a close call, but your friend Tsukiyomi-san called an ambulance just in time. It's a miracle you're still alive."

It _is_ a miracle, but I could really use another one, "So when can I go back home?"

"You're still recovering, so it'll be another night at the most."

I know it's odd, but I have mixed feelings about that. I kind of don't want to leave because I'll probably hear the ghost less if I stay, but I also want to go back so I can be with Ikuto 24/7 like before…

Oh my god, what am I saying! That sounded stalkerish, and a little creepy. He just means a lot to me and I'm so worried that something will happen to him if I'm not around. So far, things have happened to my family when I'm not around them, so I want to be with Ikuto as much as possible! Except, hospitals have visiting hours.

The doctor smiles at me and leaves, saying that I should get some more rest. I close my eyes but sleep never comes.

Ikuto, I'd feel so much better if I was in your arms and not lying on this strangely cold bed. When you're holding me, I feel safe and relaxed. You voice is so soothing, and your words are so reassuring…

I blush as I realize what I was just thinking. Oh no, am I really in love? It can't be love. I've only known him for a month or two. Who falls in love that fast…?

Suddenly, I hear a vibrating sound to my right. I look over and see my phone sitting on the chair next to the bed. Ikuto must have left it here so we could stay in contact when he left. I pick it up and smile when I see Ikuto's name on the collar ID. I really need to talk to him. I'm feeling very anxious right now, but his voice will make me feel better.

"Hello?"

"Amu, are you doing alright? Have you heard anything?"

I smile silently to myself, somehow happy that he cares so much, "I-I'm fine. I'm feeling a lot better and…" I hesitate, "no, I haven't heard anything."

"Good," he takes a deep breath, "Well, I don't know if you know what time it is, but it's getting pretty late and I doubt visiting hours are still going on…"

"What time is it?"

"It's 7:30pm."

"I don't think they've ended yet…" I pause and blush, "I-I don't mean to be a bother, a-and you don't have to, b-but would you visit me again?" I cover my face with my open hand as more heat rises to my face.

"Yeah…"

I blush a bit more, but my heart starts beating a little faster, "O-Okay.. Come quick…" I hang up and cover my face in my hands, smiling stupidly to myself. Why am I getting all worked up over seeing him for like, the gazillionth time?

My heartbeat doesn't slow down at all as I wait for Ikuto to arrive. Once he does, my heartbeat is still at a quick pace.

He walks in and smirks, "Well you seemed pretty anxious to see me again. Miss me already, did you?"

My face turns red again, "Sh-Shut up, b-baka!"

He actually smiles, not smirks! He walks over to the bed and sits down on the edge. A moment passes of unwavering eye contact, then he reaches a hand up to my face and my heartbeat gets even quicker. He gently runs it across my cheek and into my hair, then rests on the back of my head. He uses his hand to push me forward, and before I know it I'm in his arms. I silently gasp as butterflies take flight in my stomach. How is it that Ikuto always knows exactly what I want?

Please, just don't stop holding me. I… love you.

**~Chapter End~**

**WOOOHOOO! QUICKER UPDATE! I had to make up for that terrible cliffhanger at the end of the last chapter, so I updated faster! :D**

**Hehe, more romance.. It was definitely needed xD**

**Can't write for long, but I do hope you enjoyed this chapter, and ****it's still not over so don't worry!**** I'm really glad I found the time in my busy week to type this up. Thank you to all my lovely supporters! I love you all very much! Don't forget to review! :D**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	13. I Have To Leave

Yay, I'm glad I'm starting to update more often!(Mostly cause of the three day weekend xD)

Anyway, please do enjoy this chapter! :D

Note: This story is coming to a close soon!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

I hear a scream from somewhere in my house; a man's scream. No, Ikuto's scream. I panic and start running through the house, "Ikuto! Ikuto!" Please hear me, please come to me! You have to stay by my side!

I run to the end of the dark hallway and push open the last door. I stare in horror at Ikuto who's lying on the bed, holding a knife up to his throat. His eyes are glazed over when he glances at me, and terror spreads throughout my body. It looks as if Ikuto hesitates for a moment then raises the knife in the air, preparing to strike at himself. The knife starts quickly moving toward him and I shut my eyes tight and cover my ears, "NOOO!"

"Amu!"

Something nudges me in my side and I squirm, then open my eyes to find Ikuto bending over me. I gasp and my eyes fill up with tears of relief, "Ikuto!" I sit up and wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him in, "Thank God…"

"Amu, are you okay?" he says, slightly confused.

"Oh- Um, y-yeah…" I let go of him and look away, "S-Sorry," a small blush forms on my cheeks. Ikuto just chuckles and stands up straight.

"At least you didn't have bad dreams when you were at the hospital," he says and turns around, "I made breakfast."

I look at him, surprised, "O-Oh thanks!" I hear a noise from the other room and I jump, then sigh, "Um, I'm gonna get dressed. I'll be right out." Ikuto nods and leaves the room. I take a deep breath and climb out of bed, looking around the room. I don't know what to do with myself anymore, and I have no clue how I'll be able to go on like this.

And what the hell was that dream? Was it an omen? Please don't tell me it was… I have to protect Ikuto! I can't let him get hurt because of me, I just can't!

A shiver runs down my spine as I think about Ikuto's glazed over eyes, and how he almost drove the knife into his throat… "Ikuto…," I mumble and hold myself. I take a deep breath and walk over to my closet, jumping again at another noise. I grab a skirt and leggings and put them on, wanting warmth and comfort for the cold, crisp morning. I pick out a pink shirt and put it on as well, then I put on a red plaid jacket. I glance at myself in the mirror, then walk out into the hallway. Before heading to the kitchen, I glance over at the room at the end of the hall and shiver again. I sigh and turn, walking to the kitchen.

I find a plate of scrambled eggs and toast on the counter, and gratefully take a bite out of the bread, just noticing how hungry I am. I glance over to the living room and smile slightly when I see Ikuto flipping channels. He looks fine, for now at least.

I look away quickly and shut my eyes. I _have_ to do something to save Ikuto, but what? I know this ghost is just waiting for the perfect time to get him, and I have to stop it! But how? I really don't know…!

"Amu," I open my eyes and turn my head back to the living room. Ikuto is looking at me, causing me to blush just a bit, "Come here."

I flush and take another bite of the toast, "O-Once I'm finished..." Ikuto sighs and stands up then starts walking over to me, "Oh, y-you don't have to get u-"

Ikuto places a finger to my lips and I gulp, surprised he got over here so fast. He smirks and my cheeks turn a little darker.

"W-What is it?"

Ikuto grins and grabs my hand that's holding the toast. My breath catches as I stare into his eyes and he pulls my hand up. Suddenly, he opens his mouth and takes a huge bite out of the toast.

I stare blankly at the food for a moment, then finally process what just happened. I glare at him, "Hey! That's mine, you idiot!" I throw the toast down on the plate and turn, crossing my arms with a "Humph!"

Ikuto chuckles and walks a bit closer, "You're so cute when you do that."

I gasp and look over at him, my cheeks turning red again, "W-What!?" He smirks and walks a little closer, "Ikuto!" I back away a little, getting nervous.

He grins and gently grabs my chin. I freeze in place and stare into his eyes, warmth spreading throughout me. I want desperately to turn away, but his gaze is drawing me in. He moves his face a little closer, and closer.

Suddenly, a crash from the living room makes me gasp. Ikuto just looks at me, then starts to chuckle. My face turns bright red as I take his laughing as a rejection, "Stop teasing me!" I yell. He looks at me, a little surprised and I blush while staring at him, my eyes wide, "Um…" I look away, desperately thinking of what I should do. "Uh, I'm g-gonna take a sh-shower!" I quickly turn away and run up the stairs.

Great, now what does he think I think of him? Part of me wants him to know I like him, but part of me doesn't. I don't want to like him, because that'll just put him in more danger!

I run into the bathroom and lock the door behind me. I take a deep breath and take off my clothes, turning on the shower. I place a towel next to the shower and climb in. Feeling the warm water hit my skin feels really nice and it calms me down. I'm tempted to want to say like this forever, without a care in the world. Warmth feels nice. Especially when I'm being held…

A blush spreads on my face and I cover my mouth with my hand. I _cannot_ fall for Ikuto. I just _can't_!

Hm, I suppose it's a little too late for that, isn't it?

I finish washing myself then turn off the water. I grab the towel and dry my hair first, then my body and wrap it around my chest. I take another towel and wrap it in my hair, staring at myself in the mirror. The golden chain catches my eye and the moment I look at it, I feel like crying. Why does all this have to happen to me just because I made a stupid mistake when I was younger? This really isn't fair at all! I slowly get dressed and comb my hair, glaring into the mirror.

Suddenly, I understand.

If I want to save Ikuto, I have to get away from him. I can never see him again. I have to leave. I can't make him suffer, I just can't! I have to save him… I have to leave him…

I open the door and run down the hallway, stopping at my parent's room. I run into the room and stop in my tracks; I haven't been in here since Mom died. I gather my strength and walk over to the drawer, sliding it open. I rummage around and finally find a stack of money in the very back, so I take it out and start counting. It takes me a couple minutes, but I finally count 752,967 yen(approximately 9,570 dollars).

"Amu?" I hear Ikuto calling my name from the hallway. I gasp and run to the door, locking it and leaning against it from the inside. Don't come in here, Ikuto... I can't see you again, "Amu, are you in there?" Ikuto knocks on my parent's door and I take a deep breath. He probably saw me close this door.

I struggle with what I should say to him, so I just stay silent.

"Amu, are you really that upset? I'm sorry," Ikuto's smooth voice makes me shiver and blush. I quickly come to my senses and hold the money close to me.

"I-It's okay. J-Just leave me alone for a little while…"

There's a slight pause where silence takes place, then Ikuto replies, "I'll be downstairs." He hesitates, then I hear footsteps walking away from the door. I sigh in relief and slide down to the floor with my back still pushed up against the door.

I think I'm going insane.

I shake my head and stand up. With this, I should have enough money to leave town; I'll take the train. Luckily, they don't care what age you are. I hope some place will let me rent a hotel room…

What am I thinking? I can't survive alone! If it wasn't for Ikuto, I don't know what would have happened to me after both of my parents died! I have to make a decision here, and it has to be the right one.

I turn toward the door and slowly open it, peering into the hall. Seeing that the coast is clear, I rush into my bedroom. Locking the door behind me, I run to my closet and grab my suitcase, which I fill to the top quickly with clothes and other essentials.

I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…

I tiptoe to the bathroom and grab my toothbrush, toothpaste, comb, hairclips, and every other toiletry I might need. I feel like I'm forgetting something, but that's how everyone feels when they pack to leave to someplace. I could just buy whatever I need if I'm forgetting something.

I silently close the bathroom door behind me and quietly walk down the stairs, my suitcase in hand. I tiptoe past the living room, thankful that Ikuto is there watching TV and doesn't hear me. I walk over to the front door and slip on my jacket. I grab the door handle and turn it, but gasp and turn around when something grabs my shoulder.

"Where do you think you're going?"

I stare up at the one person I decided on not seeing anymore; Ikuto. Tons of emotions rush throughout my body, almost knocking me off me feet. Guilt, anger, sadness, love, regret, hurt, loneliness…

Without thinking, I drop the suitcase and throw myself at Ikuto, tears falling down my cheeks, "I'm so sorry!" I say into his shirt and hug him tightly. He tenses up with shock but soon relaxes and wraps me in his warm embrace.

His loving embrace.

It's almost like the sensitive feeling known as love erupts right there and then, engulfing us in the flames of feelings. It feels so good, but it makes me just want to cry even more. I can tell Ikuto is feeling something too, because he holds me tighter and gently pushes on my neck with his hand to bury my face deeper into his chest. I want to stay like this forever; safe in the arms of Ikuto.

But it isn't me that I want safe, it's him. I have to save him, but I just can't! I can't leave him!

"Tell me that you love me, Ikuto…," I murmur into his chest, barely thinking about my words.

"I love you."

**~Chapter End~**

**HOLY CRAP THIS CHAPTER CAME OUT SOOOOOO MUCH BETTER THAN I HAD PLANNED! Yaayyy, I'm so happy with myself!**

**Oh god, look at me! I'm so selfishhhhh xD Jk…. **

**Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed typing it! THERE IS STILL MORE TO COME! I don't know why, but I keep getting the feeling that these more climax-y chapters ending in the cliffhangers will make the reader seem like the story is over, but it isn't, so no worries! :D**

**I love all your kind reviews and I'm so happy at this story's popularity! Thank you so much, everyone! It makes me feel so loved xD I hope I can update real soon!**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	14. Nightmare

Sorry for the late update again, guys.. Everything is starting to come up at the worst times and I'm getting a little overwhelmed… Sorry to make you all wait!

Anyways, here's chapter 14!(BTW: Please remember that this story is under the TRAGEDY category… Just warning you that this story might not have a happy ending..)

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

"_I love you."_

I gasp as the words escape his mouth, my face turning red as a shiver of random excitement runs up my spine. I pull away from Ikuto's warm body and stare at him, embarrassment clearly displayed on my face, "W-What!?"

He blinks for a moment, confused by my actions. I mean, I can see why he would be. After all, I'm the one who told him to tell me he loves me…

He loves me… Ikuto loves me!

My stomach erupts with butterflies and happiness spreads throughout my body. I try my best to not show my emotions to him, but I can't help my eyes from becoming a bit brighter.

"Amu," he mumbles as he stares at me. The look on his face is strange.. It's almost as if he's surprised he said what he did too! The expression soon changes, however, to a gentle gazing. I blush and avert my eyes, finding this to be extremely awkward but really amazing too. Ikuto leans forward a little and slowly takes my face in his hands. As our skin makes contact, I can almost feel the electricity and heat between us. My eyes drift back to his, wanting nothing more than to live in this moment.

"Amu," he repeats and pauses, letting his right hand snake its way to the back of my neck, "I love you."

My eyes open just a bit more as he says the words again, my heart beating like crazy. He immediately pushes my face closer to his and he catches my lips in a soft kiss. My palms start to sweat, and my cheeks grow even pinker. I allow my eyes to flutter closed as I begin to kiss him back. Every one of my senses mutes except for touch as I concentrate on our lips. I haven't got any experience with stuff like this, but I try my best to kiss him back with as much passion as he's kissing me.

Suddenly, another crash. I gasp, but Ikuto doesn't budge. He holds me close to him and continues the warm, passionate kiss. I quickly recover from shock and close my eyes again, returning to the wonderful world of him and I.

Another crash.

I don't jump this time, but when more crashes follow I begin to get irritated. How could this stupid ghost ruin such a wonderful moment? I try my best not to let the noises bother me as I continue the kiss. Ikuto doesn't seem bothered, so I shouldn't either.

I almost take his face with my hands and pull his lips back to mine when he finally pulls away, but I reason with myself and decide that it's a bad idea. I blush as I open my eyes again, but when I notice his expression I realize that he looks somehow ashamed with himself… My eyebrows tilt upward as I look at him. He averts his eyes from mine and lets go of my head.

Suddenly I start to feel extremely insecure. Did he not want to kiss me? Did I not kiss right? Was kissing me not worth it? Did I somehow turn him off? And why didn't he use tongue? I mean, it's not like I wanted him to or anything! It's just that I imagined… No never mind.

Wait, maybe he looks ashamed because he's guilty he kissed me? Maybe he thinks I'm too young? What if he's ashamed that he loves me!?

My happiness vanishes as worrying takes its place. I _need_ to know what he's thinking! "I-Ikuto…," I mumble softly, my voice cracking in embarrassment.

He turns toward me again, but he doesn't make eye contact. He reaches down right next to me and grabs the suitcase I dropped, "Come on," he turns and starts walking toward the living room. I blink and hesitate, then follow him slowly.

What was that? Was I just rejected? No, Ikuto is the one who kissed me and told me a loves me… But what was that ashamed face?

I stare at the floor as the awkward silence engulfs us. Ikuto sets my suitcase down on the coffee table, then takes a seat on the couch. I stand for a moment, then sit down on a chair. Ikuto turns on the TV again and begins flipping. I look around the room and blush at the thought of what just happened, then frown at the thought of what happened after that.

Ikuto finally stops changing the channel and keeps it on some random show I've never seen before. I here Ikuto sigh and I look over to him. He makes a gesture as if to say, 'Come here.' I hesitate, not really sure what to do.

"Amu," he makes the gesture again, and I slowly get up. I stand awkwardly and look at him, unsure if I should actually go over to him. Ikuto suddenly flashes an encouraging smile and my cheeks turn pink again. My gaze fixes on the ground as I scurry over to him then sit down, cuddling up close to him. I have no idea how I got so brave all of the sudden, but hopefully he just thinks I'm scared by the noises or something. Ikuto wraps his left arm around me and smirks, causing me to blush more. I duck my head and bury it in his chest, suddenly getting really tired and drifting off.

**xxx**

"Amu," I open my eyes to find Ikuto just a couple inches from my face, smirking.

I blush and smile, "H-Hi…" I sit up and look around, but something doesn't feel right. I decide to push the thought away as Ikuto leans a bit closer to me. I blush and lean back a bit, nervous.

"Come on, don't be shy," he smirks and leans down even more, causing me to be lying down flat again. I blush and look up at him.

"W-What is it?"

"I love you," he mumbles and I gasp just in time before he presses his lips to mine. He begins the kiss, but I soon join in with synchronized motions. I reach up and run my fingers through his hair, and he smirks against my lips.

Wait, something _doesn't _feel right. Actually, I don't feel _anything_. I remember how yesterday when Ikuto kissed me my insides were going crazy, but right now I'm completely calm. Wow… Is this how your second kiss is? Cause if it is, then second kisses are kinda boring…

Well, I love it anyway!

He eventually pulls away and pushes himself off the couch. I blush when I realize he doesn't have a shirt on and quickly look away. How did I not notice that before? "I'll make breakfast." He says then leaves the room. I smile stupidly to myself and blush as I bury my face in the couch. I hear the soft noise of Ikuto moving things around in the kitchen and I sigh, relieved I slept well last night.

Hold on! I know what isn't right! Where did the noises go? Where's the ghost?

I uncover my face from the couch and look around, confused. The second I stand up I hear noises coming from the kitchen, but they aren't from the ghost. They're from Ikuto. I panic and run to the kitchen, afraid of what I might see.

As soon as my feet touch the cool kitchen tiles, I feel like I'm going to collapse. The image-it's just like before! Ikuto is clutching his chest, breathing hard. The muscles on his arms and back are tensing together, and he's groaning with pain.

"Ikuto!" I try to run toward him, but my legs suddenly stop working. I fall to the ground and look up to Ikuto, who's now also on the ground. He makes one last effort to clutch the part of his chest where his heart is, then his limps go limp and his weight presses against the cold tile.

I stare in horror at the scene before me, my eyes filling with tears. I shut my eyes closed and start punching the ground out of anger and sorrow.

"No, Ikuto you can't!" I scream and punch again, but this time my fist doesn't hit tile- it hits skin. I gasp and open my eyes, desperately trying to wipe away the tears so I can see clearly. As soon as my vision is cleared, I stare in shock as I see Ikuto lying right next to me on the couch.

"Would you stop punching me? And I can't what?" He looks at me confused and amused at the same time.

D-Did I miss something?

I suddenly comprehend what just happened and my body fills with relief. I smile and allow the tears to flow again, hugging Ikuto tightly.

"Nightmare?" he asks softly and I nod.

I hug him for a moment or so, then suddenly realize what I'm hugging; bare skin. I gasp and pull myself away from him, staring at his bare chest.

"W-Where's your shirt!?" I ask, blushing.

Ikuto shrugs, "I got hot, so I took it off at night."

"It's the middle of winter!"

Ikuto makes a face and my face turns bright red. I quickly avert my eyes from him, "Y-You p-pervert!"

"How am I the pervert? You're the one thinking that stuff just cause I took my shirt off."

"P-Put it b-back on!"

"Fine, whatever," he gets up from the couch chuckling under his breath and reaches for his shirt that was on the floor. He picks it up and pulls it over his head. I can't help but stare and blush as he does this, just making me feel even weirder than I already do. Maybe he's right. Maybe I _am_ a pervert…

"I'll make breakfast," Ikuto turns and starts walking to the kitchen. I come back to reality as I hear his words and quickly jump off the couch.

"No wait!" he turns around and I blush again, embarrassed, "Uh, I'll h-help!"

He laughs, "Whatever you say," He turns and continues to the kitchen. I glare at him, but quickly follow him out of the room right as a crash sounds from the living room.

No matter what, I can't leave Ikuto's side. Yesterday, I thought that to save Ikuto, I would have to leave him, but now that we're closer, I can't leave him. I'm to- afraid… My dreams, they-they seemed so real…

Ikuto makes the eggs, and I put the toast in the toaster. A simple job, but one just easy enough for me to do successfully. While waiting for the bread, I walk over to Ikuto at the stove. He puts a lid over the eggs and looks at me, "What?"

"Nothing!" I say quickly. He nods and grabs two plates. I blink and look at him, then just decide to ask him, "Uh, Ikuto?" He glances at me again and I continue, "Y-Yesterday after we uh… yeah… Why were you… um…," I look away, searching for the right word. I would use looking ashamed, but I don't what to offend him or anything somehow.

"Because," he answers before I can find the right word, "I'm 17 and you're 12."

I blink and stare at him, slightly confused. That's his answer? Yeah, it's a big age difference, but does that… does that matter, really?

"I-I know…," I murmur and look down.

"Besides," he takes the lid off the pan and puts the eggs on the plates, "You've got kiddy-king."

"Huh?" I look up at him and gasp quietly when I remember Tadase. Dammit, I was supposed to call him to make plans for another day when he's free… But wait, if I like someone else, then why would I bother dating Tadase?

"Toast."

"What?"

"It's burning."

I turn around and groan in frustration as I look at the burnt toast that just popped out of the toaster, "Dammit," I curse and grab the toast, throwing it into the trash and cursing again because I burned my fingers. Ikuto chuckles and I glare at him, "Whatever." I grab the plate of eggs and bring it to the table.

"Aw, I wanted toast."

"Too bad!" I start eating the eggs and sigh. Ikuto takes his plate and sits next to me. We eat in silence until we're finished, then I finally say quietly, "I thought you told me not to bother with Tadase…"

"I did." Ikuto gently grabs my chin and pulls my face to his. This time, when he presses his lips to mine a huge electric shock goes up my spine. I close my eyes and happily kiss him back.

So he was just worried that I was too young… I guess that's not unreasonable, but at least it doesn't seem like he's grossed out by kissing me! I smile against his lips.

No, I definitely don't want anything to happen to Ikuto.

**~Chapter End~**

**Yay I updated! I gotta wrap this up quickly, so a quick thanks to all my readers again and now I gotta get to bed! Thanks for reading and reviewing! :D**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	15. Puddle of Blood

Hello my lovely story followers! I'm so sorry I never got around to updating last weekend, but I hope I can make it up to you by updating as many of my stories as I can! Forgive me for taking so long Dx

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

"I love snow…" I mumble, smiling at the fluffy whiteness of the outdoors through the window.

Ikuto walks into the living room where I am and leans against the door frame, "Yeah."

I stare outside, watching the white flecks drift from the sky and pile on the Earth, burying the front yard in cold wonder. After a few moments go by, I sense Ikuto behind me. I don't turn but continue looking at the snow in silent awe. I feel warm hands on my shoulder and my cheeks turn a subtle pink. Suddenly, I feel hot lips on my neck and Ikuto kisses my skin. Shivers run through me and I spin around and look at him.

"I-Ikuto!" I blush dark red at his erotic move.

Ikuto just smirks at me, "Wanna hear a love story?"

I blush again and look away, "N-No way, y-you pervert!"

"I will seek and find you," he begins and I look away, embarrassed. He walks a little closer and continues, "I will take you to bed and control you," I gasp in surprised but Ikuto just smirks and puts a finger to my lips, "I will make you ache, shake and sweat until you grunt and groan…"

"I-Ikuto," I mutter, completely uncomfortable but suddenly also feeling very nervous and warm.

"I will make you beg for mercy. I will exhaust you to the point that you will be relieved when I leave you." He brings my face closer to his, "And you will be weak for days." I shiver and avert my eyes as Ikuto moves his lips to my ear, "Love, the flu."

I blink, unable to process what he said quick enough before Ikuto starts chuckling. My face turns an even darker shade of red as I give Ikuto the Death Glare. He steps away, but continues laughing.

"Y-YOU PERVERTED BAKA!" I whack him on the head and turn away from him, embarrassed.

He laughs a bit longer then rubs his head, "Ouch, Amu-koi…"

"D-Don't call me that."

"Why?"

"Just don't."

"But I love you." I gasp at his sudden confession and look at him. So far, he's said it four times. Well, I guess I wouldn't count the time he said it in my nightmare. I mean, that part of the nightmare was amazing, but after that…

"I-" I stop midsentence and look outside, confused. I love Ikuto. I want to say that, but should I? I don't want to love him, but I do! Well, I want to… I just don't know! If we're in love, it's only more of a risk, but if he's in love with me and I'm not, he's still at a risk! It's a lose-lose situation. It's only a win because we love each other.

Ikuto and I love each other!

I smile stupidly and Ikuto smirks, "You know you love me."

I do.

He steps toward me and soon I feel his warmth engulf me in a passionate hug. I sigh with happiness and lean on him, wanting to stay like this forever. However, he pulls away sooner than I want and takes my hand. My skin tingles with his touch as he leads me to the door and starts putting on his jacket. He tosses me mine and I look at him, confused.

"Where are we going?" I ask.

"To actually do something, for a change." He smirks, "So come on, get ready!"

I obey and slip my jacket on and slide my feet into my winter boots. Ikuto grabs a random hat off the rack and fits it on my head. I roll my eyes at him, "This is Ami's." I point to the unicorn displayed on the front and Ikuto just grins.

"I like it."

I pull the hat off my head and grab my own, "If someone sees me with that hat on holding your hand, they'll think you're a pedophile."

"Ah, so you wanna hold my hand, that's it?" He smirks and I blush then he grabs my hand, "Let's go, then."

We walk out the front door and start in the direction of town. Halfway to town we stop at a café and Ikuto buys me a hot chocolate. I blush and hope he thinks my red cheeks are from the cold as we make it into town.

"So, where are we going, again?" I ask him as I finish my hot chocolate.

"Movies?" He suggests. Oh, he didn't even know! Well, I still think it's sweet.

"Okay," I smile and we walk to the theater.

"There's 2 horrors, 3 romances, an adventure, 2 animations, and a documentary on cats, apparently.." Ikuto reads off the list of movies playing so we can decide on one.

"Uh..," I ponder the choices. Definitely not horror and I'm not a fan of adventure movies. Seeing a romance with Ikuto would be very awkward in my opinion…

I look at the names of the other three films. One of the animations is about war, so I rule out that. The other animation is about romance of course, so I guess it's gonna be the documentary! That's okay cause I love cats!

"How about the documentary?" I look up at him.

Ikuto smirks, "Sure, why not?"

We both walk into the theater and buy our tickets. Once we're seated in the theater, I glance at Ikuto and ask, "Do you like cats?"

"Actually," he grins at me, "they're my favorite animal."

"Really?" I giggle. I didn't expect Ikuto to be a cat lover! "That's so cute!"

"Why thank you, Amu-koi. I'm happy to know that you think of me as cute," he smirks and runs his hand along my cheek for a moment, but soon takes his fingers away. I blush gently and turn toward the projection as soon as the previews begin.

The movie was very cute and short(about an hour long) with no real meaning except saying the different types of cats and their habits. Once it's over, Ikuto and I get up to leave. He grabs my hand and leads me to the exit when something brushes by my other hand. I scream really quickly and Ikuto looks at me, alarmed.

"What happened?!"

"Something touched my hand!"

Ikuto quickly brings me out of the theater so we can see my hand in the light. I move my arm up so we can both see my hand, but instead of anything on my hand we see cuts around my wrist under my chain bracelet.

"Th-Those weren't there a second ago! I didn't even feel it!"

Ikuto reaches out to my arm to inspect the cuts closer but I quickly move my arm away and let go of his hand, "I-I'm gonna wash these out on the bathroom.." I turn and rush to the bathroom.

I run my wrist under cool water then dry it with one of the air drying machines before wrapping my wrist in toilet paper.

Was it the ghost?

I shiver in fear and suddenly have an urge to see Ikuto again so he can comfort me. I rush out of the bathroom and walk toward the spot where Ikuto was waiting. However, I look around but don't see him. I blink in confusion and check the areas adjacent to where we exited the theater, "Ikuto?" I call, but there's no answer.

Maybe he went to the bathroom? Yeah, probably…

I wait for a bit longer than 5 minutes and start panicking. Ikuto, where are you?! Fear ends up taking over my body as I search the building. Where could he have gone?

I fumble with my pocket because of my shaking fingers but eventually pull out my phone. I text Ikuto asking where he is, but when he doesn't reply, I dial his number.

One ring.

Two.

Three.

Ikuto, please, please pick up! Don't leave me here!

Four.

Please!

Five.

"Yo, it's Ikuto. Leave a message if you want but I probably won't call you back unless it's important."

Shit, Ikuto you baka!

BEEP.

"Ikuto!" my voice is panicked, "Ikuto! Please, please call me back right now! Where are you? I was in the bathroom at the theater and now you're gone! Please tell me where you are. What happened? Please call me…" I hang up and wait a few minutes before calling again. After five rings it goes to voicemail again, and I leave another message identical to the first.

Where the hell are you, Ikuto?!

After going into a depressed panicking state and waiting almost an hour to see if I would hear from Ikuto, I run to my house, wanting to get home as soon as possible to see if he maybe went there without me.

I quickly unlock the door and call Ikuto's name repeatedly, but no one answers. I step inside the house and immediately my cell phone starts ringing. My heart leaps and I quickly answer, not bothering to look at the collar ID cause I'm too hopeful, "Ikuto?!"

There's a pause on the other line, then I hear, "…Ms. Hinamori-san?"

My heart sinks and I feel like I'm about to cry, "U-Um, who is this?"

"It's Dr. Yoshida from Sumitomo Hospital."

Oh, the hospital where my sister is at… "O-Oh, h-hello…" I take a couple more steps inside the house.

"I'm aware that you didn't come to visit your sister today, and it's a shame."

"Oh yeah, sorry…" I mumble.

"Well, there's something I need to tell you," she hesitates and I turn the corner to enter the living room, "Your sister is dead."

I drop the phone on the floor and stare in horror at the scene in front of me.

"Ms. Hinamori-san? Ms. Hinamori-san!" I hear the faint voice coming from the phone but don't pay attention.

Instead, all I can stare at is Ikuto. Ikuto who is lying limp on the floor in a puddle of blood.

**~Chapter End~**

**Once again, sorry about the late update Dx I'll make it up to you by posting another chapter tomorrow or something except…. ****THE NEXT CHAPTER IS THE LAST****. Yes, yes, I'm sorry but I'm afraid that's just the way the story goes.**

**Don't forget to review. OH MY GOD I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS STORY HAS 120+ REVIEWS AND 4,000+ VIEWS. IT LITERALLY JUST MADE MY DAY TO FIND THAT OUT!**

**Anyways…**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune98**


	16. My White World Filled With Emptiness

Hey everyone, now that was quick! Yeah I wanted to update quickly so I could make it up to you for not updating last weekend. I was gonna update tomorrow, but I just realized I'm really busy tomorrow so I wrote it a chapter early xD

Sooooo, here's chapter 16 as well as THE LAST CHAPTER OF MISFORTUNE. Please enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or any of the characters!**

It's hard to explain what I'm feeling, really. Probably, if I am to explain briefly, it is a mixture of pain, sorrow, depression, terror, grief, mourning, regret, distress, sadness, anger, guilt, hurt, dread, panic and dismay multiplied by 10.

I feel hollow.

No tears come. I have no tears to shed. Not after dad's, mom's, Ami's and Ikuto's de-dea-dea…

I can't even think of the word. I won't accept it.

Tiny step after tiny step allows me to finally get to where I need to be; at Ikuto's side. I kneel down and nudge him gently, "Get up, Ikuto… The floor is not the place to sleep…" I nudge him, a small smile on my lips, "Come on, Ikuto…"

I brush his gorgeous blue hair out of his face, "If I called you Ikuto-koi, would you get up?" I wait, but no answer comes, "Alright, get up now Ikuto_-koi_." I smile a little bit and narrow my eyes. "Come on, I said I'd call you Ikuto-koi if you'd get up." I nudge him a little harder and my eyes begin to close.

"Hey Ami! Come here and try to get Ikuto to wake up for me. He won't get up!" My eyes droop closed, but I open them again as I try to wake him. I sit down and feel liquid seep through my clothes. Liquid that's red, "Ikuto-koi, Ikuto-koi! Come on, get up, Ikuto-koi…"

I bend over and close my eyes then press my lips against his cold lips. Once I pull away and open my eyes, the floor has melted away and the red liquid is gone. Ami runs by me smiling and nudges Ikuto, "IKUTO-SAN!" she yells happily and Ikuto opens his eyes. He smirks and pats Ami's head. I look at them then blink and the scene blurs back to Ikuto on the ground with red surrounding him and no one running around yelling happily.

I sit there for a moment with a blank expression on my face. I'm most certainly hollow, and all I feel is numbness. I stand up subconsciously and move without me controlling my legs.

I don't know how I got these, but somehow there's a rope and a screw with a hook on the end in my hands. I bring a chair into the living room and stand on top of it. I screw the hook into the ceiling then tie the rope into a knot. I don't even know how to knot a noose, but somehow I just did. I tie a strong knot around the hook and look at the hanging rope I've created.

I hope you're happy now, whatever you are. Ghost, if you really are. I hope you're happy that you're getting me to do this. Why are you getting me to do this again? Oh yeah, cause I accidently killed my own Grandpa. Honestly, I think K-I-L-L-I-N-G my mom, dad, Ami and Ikuto along with me is much worse than an accidental murder, but who knows the rules of the ghost world? They're definitely not the same as our laws.

How could I let this thing get to everyone I love first? How could I be so selfish as to not kill myself before they got hurt? How could I? It shouldn't have been like this. I shouldn't have let them be killed. If I had only known this bracelet would cause this misfortune. If only I knew!

Slowly, I slide the rope around my neck and look down at Ikuto's body.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry you fell in love with a cursed girl. I'm sorry you died because of me. I'm sorry you're dead and nothing was your fault. It's not fair; you were the best thing that ever happened to me, and I got you killed! How could I do that? How?

I'm sorry that I'm doing this. I know you told me not to, but if I don't, who knows who else I'll hurt? People like me are meant to die. Cursed people are contagious. When you're thinking of things you want to have, a curse is not the first thing that pops into your mind.

I want to live, but I can't. Not anymore. Not when I know I'll hurt more innocent people. Not when I'm being followed by a ghost. Not when a ghost wants to kill me. Not without you…

Not without you, Ikuto…

Save me, please.

I kick away the chair and feel the breath being stolen from me. I hear the ghost's crashing all around me as I struggle for air, kicking and gasping and choking. I try to pull my head out of the rope but it's no use. Suddenly my struggles get weaker and weaker, and soon I find myself closing my eyes. My arms fall limply to my sides and before all my senses cease, I feel the golden chain slide off my wrist and hear it fall onto the floor as everything goes black.

I love you.

**~End~**

**This story's first chapter was published on 07/28/2012 and is now finished on 10/27/2012! :D We've had a long run, guys, and a great one too! It's been way too fun writing these chapters(another reason why I didn't get my homework done xD)!**

**If the story line was a bit confusing to you, please feel free to PM me about it and I'd feel more than happy to answer your questions! Anytime you guys need anything, come ask me! :D**

**Lastly, I wanna thank my reviewers!**

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**And every one of the Guests who reviewed!**

**I'm sorry if I forgot anyone! I was scrolling through the reviews quickly xD Anyways, thank you so much to those people who stuck with the story and reviewed, and thank you to all who read it but didn't review! I hope you all enjoyed it :)**

**Thanks for everything!**

**(And don't forget, if you liked this story, be sure to check out some of my others!)**

**Arigato gozaimasu!**

**~AmuletFortune**


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